#'beating Argentina for the third time in a row would be too good to be true' it happened tho!! it happened!!!!

[charlyritter]

NOOOOOOOO HAHAHAHAHAHAHHAAAAA

[katariinasworld]

@tinyoinklover : Hello! I saw that you take requests for Haikyuu 😄 can I get a Oikawa x reader one? Reader is a shy classmate of his that he falls for and ends up confessing to her later on.

*************************************************

You never were the type of person to have many friends in fact you have zero friends. It’s not like people doesn’t like you no you are just too shy to talk to them. You are the type of person to be determinate and make everything to achieve your dream to become (your dream job). You are not the typical shy girl as when you are alone or with someone with whom you are at ease you are never at loss of words.

You were in the great Oikawa’s class since first year and today you are a third year in his class again. In those three years you didn’t talk to him once. But you got to be « friend » with Iwaizumi since he is in the journalism club just like you. (You had to choose a club and this one was the best choice)

What you hate about him are his fans, they scream first thing in the morning.

*Girls please have so dignity and stop screaming like pigs in the morning at 8AM just for a guy who don’t care about you...*

Plus the way he thinks he is above everyone just because he is the volleyball’s team captain that irritate you.

Its not that you hate him nor you like him you just tolerate him in your class. Yes you find him handsome, I mean LOOK AT THE BOY YOU ARE NOT BLIND. And you find it amusing every time Iwaizumi is beating him up. 

Today, you went to School early as usual to avoid the screams of Oikawa’s fan and to study in peace. What you didn't expect was to see Oikawa already in class. You tried to avoid him and went to your sit. Key word : TRIED. 

He called you, surprised because he called you by your name you turned to him with your eyes widen. 

YN : Wh...What do you want, Oikawa-san ?

Oikawa : I just wanted to know what you are doing here so early LN-chan? School doesn't start before an hour...

YN : *LN-chan ?* I come early to school everyday to avoid the noise your fans make to study in calm... Wh...What about you ?

Oikawa : I... I have to study for today’s science test... If I don't get a good mark the coach is gonna put me on the bench for the next matches...

YN : *Suck to be you* I can maybe help you study...

Oikawa : REALLY ?! YOU WOULD HELP ME ?! 

YN : Yes but can...can you lower your voice please...

Oikawa : Ah... euh... yes sorry... thank you LN-chan !

You helped him study his science until everyone came to class. Because of that You couldn't do what you were going to do. The boy was really difficult to teach to, he always had his head In the clouds and was not concentrated on what you said. So you had to use volleyball terms to not lose him.

The day after, you were gathering your things to go back home when suddenly someone screamed your name. Everyone looked at you, you blushed hard and noticed both Iwaizumi and Oikawa coming over you. Iwaizumi smacked Oikawa on his head and told him to be quiet and not screaming. The latter rub his head just where Iwaizumi smacked him and put his attention on me. 

Oikawa : Thanks LN-chan !! Thanks to you I got a good mark on science !

YN : You welcome but I didn't really do anything I just helped you understand the subject you had a good mark thanks to your hard work... 

Oikawa : No no its thanks to you ! So I want to thank you by inviting you somewhere ! 

YN : I told you its okay ! Im happy you got to stay in the team your fans would have been devastated...

Iwaizumi : Stay in the team ?

Oikawa : Haha... Yes Iwa-chan, coach told me if I had bad grade he would put me on the bench. 

Iwaizumi : What the.... 

Oikawa : ANYWAY ! Please LN-chan !!

YN: Sorry Oikawa-san...

You then went home and keep replaying the conversation you had with the pretty setter. Yesterday, when you helped him study you talked a little bit, you found out he was not the proud captain you thought he was. Yes he likes to be the center of attention but the way he talk about volleyball, the way his eyes are glowing when he talked about that volleyball team in Argentina. And how his face became really sad when he talked about when he got injuried. *NO NO YOU CANT FALL FOR HIM ! YOU GOT RID OF THAT CRUSH YOU HAD ON HIM IN FIRST YEAR YOU CANT FALL AGAIN !*

The week passed by quickly, its Saturday, the volleyball team has a match and Oikawa kept bothering you to come but kept on telling him no. To your surprise Iwaizumi asked you to come too, to, I quit “make Trashykawa shut his mouth”, you thought about it and decided to go. 

You sat on the first row, if you go to the match may as well have a good view. You spot Oikawa and noticed he was searching for someone, deep inside of you you hoped he was looking for you A GIRL CAN DREAM ! One of his teammate called him so he had to go but you swore you saw a sad expression on his face. Oikawa was the first one to serve, when he looked at the bleacher and he spotted you, he made THE serve (you know the one). 

The match ended, you walked down the bleachers and went to go out the gymnasium. When you passed by the locker room you are pulled in a corner. You looked up to see Oikawa an inch close to your face. You blushed and asked him stuttering what does he want. He looked at you and noticed how much close he is to you. He back away a little took a deep breath and look at you in your (eye color) eyes.

Oikawa : LN-chan I made a promise to the guys...

YN : A promise about what ?

Oikawa : I told them that if we win the match I’m going to ask you on a date...

YN : Wh...why ?

Oikawa : You are not like the others girls you don’t care about me and what you can have if you were to be my girlfriend. You like to be by yourself in the silence and study or read. You must have not noticed but I’m always looking at you since first year. In first year you would always blush when I look at you I found that so cute but after sometimes in second year and now in third year you don’t even pay attention to me. To you I’m just Oikawa Tōoru a classmate not Oikawa the captain of the volleyball team or Oikawa the good looking one and I love that I can be myself with you. You are attentive and you like to help the others. When I told you I had some difficulties in science even if we are not friend you helped me...

YN : Thats because I know you really wanted to play this match...

Oikawa : Exactly ! Plus I love how you are so plunge into what you are doing and it’s mesmerizing how you are determined to achieve your dream of becoming a successful (your dream job)...

YN : How... how do you know about that ?

Oikawa : I heard you talking with Iwa-chan... Anyway what I’m trying to say LN-chan is that I really like you and it’s been while by the way... So would you go on a date with me please ?

YN : How do you expect me to say no now that you said all those things...

Oikawa : Is that a yes ?

YN : Yes Oikawa-san I will go on a date with you...

Oikawa : YES !!!

And you went on this date and many more dates after. You became his girlfriend but no one except his teammates knew about that because you didn’t want attention and Oikawa was okay with that he also is more distant with his fans to respect you and not making you jealous...

*************************************************

Bonus :

YN : Who could’ve know that me helping you in science to let you stay in the team would get us together...

Oikawa : Haha speaking about this... I may have lie to you...

YN : Explain yourself ?

Oikawa : I really wanted to speak to you but I didn’t know how to get near you... Everytime we made eye contact you had this look on your face you know the same one as Iwa-chan has when he is mad... So I had to make an excuse... I knew you went to school early I see you everyday when I’m going to morning practice so I thought that was my chance to talk to you... Are you mad at me ?

YN : No... Thats actually very funny !

****************************************************

I hope that's what you wanted :)

masterlist

[motogpfanpage]

ROUND 18: MALAYSIA

Last round of the Asian tour for the MotoGP paddock took place at Sepang. The Malaysian track always provides it's lot of drama due to the weather conditions and the fair wars betweens riders going into the last part of the championship. This year Malaysian GP was no exception.

 1) Fate favors the Brave ...

 Having the start from 7th on the grid due to a "dangerous behavior being too slow on the racing line" penalty, Marc Marquez knew from the very start that the race would be a hard one and that he would have to push for the win: "It was a very, very hard race. First because we started from seventh place, so that was an extra motivation because I'd never won from the third row. The first lap was not the best of my career and I had to overtake some riders, but then I saw that Valentino was pushing really hard from the beginning. So I pushed too, but I was riding like qualifying and I overheated my tires."

Pushing is one thing, but in Marquez' case, pushing also means saving a handfull of crashes, which once again he did all weekend long: "I was just riding by instinct, not by using my head, and pushing on the limit. I was fighting against myself and the bike to be as close to Valentino to attack in the end. I nearly crashed 3-4 times during the race."

Lady luck though already had her plan moving and while Marc Marquez almost made a mistake at each lap it's Rossi who went down while he was leading at the front from Marquez and Zarco: "The plan was just to try to be there at the end! I mean, I didn't have anything more. We were both riding on the limit. A really fast pace. But he was on the limit too and I saw he was starting to struggle, but there were only 4-5 laps left so it would be very close, because our level was very equal. (...) When I was only six tenths behind he did a mistake because he was a little bit wide and when you are fighting like this you don't want to lose any time, so he tried to come back on the line too quickly and crashed. When I saw that Valentino fell, my body just relaxed and I was riding in another way, because both of us were pushing a lot."

 2) ... Or maybe it doesn't.

After a very disappointing race at Phillip Island where teammate Maverick Vinales won, Valentino Rossi was desperate to finally find the miraculous recipe to get back on the top step of the podium, and for a while, he did, thanks to the many changes his team made on the bike: “We modify a lot the bike, the setting to try and make everything help the rear tyre. At the end it worked. Already from Friday morning I felt good. We worked well with the team. We just made a small adjustment. We can be competitive for all the race. Also Maverick was not so bad, and also Zarco. Because Maverick started from very behind, no? This time the three Yamahas were quite competitive. It was more mechanical [than electronics changes]. In the last races we improved the electronics, like three or four races ago that helped a bit. But now it’s more mechanical. For me the problems are not fixed and we have to improve. Like I said, we worked well on the software but we have to make something more in the hardware from Japan. I think we need some details, especially in the electronics and also in the engine. We speak a lot with the Japanese and it looks like it will work.”

But fate, karma or whatever you would like to call it had other plans for Rossi and so, even though he made a pitch perfect race start and went on to do a fantastic job at leading the race, the only mistake made by the italian proved to be lethal for his hopes of a win: “It’s a mixed feeling. From one side I’m very happy for the race because it’s the best race of the season for me and also it was coming in difficult conditions at a difficult track for us. This is very important. On the other side it’s a great, great shame. I’m very disappointed for the mistake. To make a race like this and go home with zero points is frustrating, yes. We have to say it’s my first mistake of the season because I arrived always at the end except in Argentina. But maybe it’s the worst moment. But like you said, I’m devastated for the crash. But I’m also happy because anyway we lived the dream for 15 laps. After the victory of my brother also, it can be a great, great day. But it’s like this.”

The crash cost Valentino Rossi a lot as this zero point taken makes him lose the runner up position in the championship standings to Dovizioso and he will now have to fight against Vinales for 3rd at Valencia, a track he doesn't keep close to his heart: “Also today the result can be very important also for the championship because if I don’t win and I arrive second I close the third place with Maverick and I can be five points from Dovi [Andrea Dovizioso] for second in Valencia. Now Dovi has gone and we have to fight with Maverick for the third place. But I think Valencia is an important weekend because it’s one of the most difficult tracks. If we are able to be strong also there it’s positive."

Valentino might have lost the 2nd place in the standings but he did won back the admiration of many fans who were desperate to see him do well again. He also impressed his former teammate Jorge Lorenzo who congratulated and praised him on twitter:

JL99: "Apart from the crash, I've never seen Valentino Rossi so consistent. More than 10 laps in just 1 tenth at the hottest and longest track impressed me. And some said he started to feel his age after last race"

Such praise coming from the number 99 could only soften Rossi who answered: "Grazie  Jorge!"

We couln't be happier to see them finally having a respectfull releationship !

 3) Behind Marquez

Behind the race winner, Alex Rins took another podium leading him to a fantastic 2nd half of the season: "Our Suzuki is going very good. The factory deserves it. They have done a really good job during all the season, because since Qatar I felt we had a very competitive bike. But it looks like since the middle of the season we did a very big step. At Assen, Suzuki brought me a new engine, with a little bit more top-end power, and since this point we improved a lot. We were able to hold the slipstream and fight with Yamaha and Honda on the straight. And then also I think the experience of trying to control more the tyres and electronics. Suzuki are now working for next year, taking a lot of information, and already Guintoli is trying a new engine that looks very good. We will see what happens next year. For sure I will give my best to try to beat these guys and be more constant at the front."

 It's been a while since Johann Zarco was able to fight for pole positions and race podiums but in Malaysia, like his yamaha teammates, the frenchman was back to his old self and fought for the 2nd place most of the race, only giving it away to Rins at the very end: "The strong beginning of the race was key for the podium. I had a great start from pole and it helped me to go well in the first two corners. Valentino was pushing a lot and going so fast. I was not able to overtake him,  but following him was good enough to go away and save the podium. Later I did a mistake in corner 14 and Marc overtook me very cleanly and then I tried to stay behind him. I expected Marc could catch Vale quickly but instead he was closing step-by-step. I lost a little bit to him, but I was able to keep a good pace and have a bigger gap to the guys behind me. After Valentino crashed I was second, again with a good gap, I thought I could control it but five laps from the end I saw on the pit board that Alex was coming maybe five-tenths per lap faster than me! I tried to push but I was not fast enough and in the last lap when he overtook me in turn four I wanted to overtake him again and fight a little bit. But there wasn't the possibility and I almost crashed in turn 11. I got the podium last year here in tricky conditions, but this year was like a real constant race and the strong beginning helped me finish on the podium. Third is just a fantastic present because I'm now the first Independent rider. I'll try to keep it in Valencia and being on the same points as Rins means whoever finishes in front can be in the top five of the championship."

Now the paddock is heading back to Europe and back to Spain for Valencia and it’s legendary end of the season race. Jorge Lorenzo should make a full comeback after a failed attempt at Sepang. Rossi and Vinales will fight against each other for the 3rd place in the standings while the Team, Best independent and Rookie of the year titles are still to be given away.

Buckle up, Valencia is coming. And we will be there. #CannotWait 

[thisdaynews]

England v Australia: Michael Hooper braced for breakdown battle

New Post has been published on https://thebiafrastar.com/england-v-australia-michael-hooper-braced-for-breakdown-battle/

England v Australia: Michael Hooper braced for breakdown battle

Rugby World Cup quarter-final: England v Australia Venue:Oita StadiumDate:Saturday, 19 OctoberKick-off:08:15 BST Coverage:Live commentary on BBC Radio 5 Live and online with text updates on the BBC Sport website and app.

Australia’s Michael Hooper says he is prepared for England flankers Tom Curry and Sam Underhill to try usurp him and David Pocock at the breakdown in Saturday’s World Cup quarter-final.

Curry and Underhill said on Thursday it would be “surreal” to face two players they idolised growing up.

“It’s going to be a good battle,” said Australia captain Hooper.

“We’ve done our work on them. I think they’re great players. They are a top-tier international back row.”

Tom Curry and Sam Underhill have been dubbed the ‘Kamikaze Kids’ by England coach Eddie Jones

Pocock, 31, has announced he will retire from international rugby at the end of his third World Cup campaign, while Hooper, 27, will be playing his 99th Test when he takes on England in Oita.

Underhill, 23, and Curry, 21, have only 28 caps between them and will be starting together for just the fourth time.

England drop Ford and move Farrell to 10

I feel for Ford but it was inevitable – Matt Dawson column

Petaia, 19, to start for Australia

Old mates Jones and Cheika face off again

However, Hooper said that his and Pocock’s experience is not necessarily an advantage.

He added: “It’s great to have experience but also being youthful is of benefit. I have been in their shoes before, being wide-eyed, ready to attack things.

“The ruck is a great part of the game. It’s going to be, as always, a huge part of the Test match.”

Tale of four flankers Pocock Hooper Underhill Curry Age 31 27 23 21 Caps 82 98 12 16 Test debut Nov 2008 Jun 2012 Jun 2017 Jun 2017 Carries at RWC 2019 29 40 10 26 Tackles at RWC 2019 29 19 26 29

Frenchman Jerome Garces, who will referee the match on Saturday, was criticised for being too lenient at the breakdown by some South African punditsin the wake of the Springboks’ defeat by New Zealand on the tournament’s opening weekend.

Hooper, whose side struggled with discipline early in the tournament, is confident the Wallabies can now work with whatever interpretation the Frenchman brings to the contest.

“I have observed the ruck being refereed a multitude of ways, not any one way in particular. So, it’s made it quite tricky there,” he said.

“How we start the start the game and definitely adapt to what is going on out there is pretty crucial for us.”

‘We have been able to get out teeth into Australia’

England scrum-half Ben Youngs says the cancellation of their final pool-stage match against France because of Typhoon Hagibis had given them the chance to go into more depth in their analysis of the Wallabies.

Eddie Jones’ side will have had a fortnight out of action when they kick-off in Oita, with their last outing a 39-10 win over a 14-man Argentina on 5 October.

“We have been able to get our teeth into Australia earlier, look at their footage and the pattern we want to play,” said Youngs.

Henry Slade’s last competitive start was for Exeter in June

“We feel fresh and ready to go.”

England coach Jones has brought centre Henry Slade into the side as part of a backline reshuffle that saw pool-stage fly-half George Ford dropped to the bench and his preferred Six Nations 10-12-13 combination of Owen Farrell, Manu Tuilagi and Slade restored.

Slade’s last international start was in March with his recovery from a knee injury restricting him to replacement appearances against Tonga and Argentina since.

Tuilagi believes the trio can rediscover their best form immediately, though.

“Henry is massive for us,” he said.

“He can play, run, kick, he can do it all round, so for him to in our backline adds a massive part to our game.

“With Faz at 10, we have been together for a while and understand each other well. Hopefully that will come out tomorrow.”

Best in the family? Youngs jokes with Toomua

Itoje relishing calm before quarter-final battle

Media playback is not supported on this device

Rugby Union Weekly’s Chris Ashton makes World Cup quarter-final predictions

Teams

England:Daly; Watson, Slade, Tuilagi, May; Farrell (capt), Youngs; M Vunipola, George, Sinckler; Itoje, Lawes; Curry, Underhill, B Vunipola.

Replacements:Cowan-Dickie, Marler, Cole, Kruis, Ludlam, Heinz, Ford, Joseph.

Australia:Beale; Hodge, Petaia, Kerevi, Koroibete; Lealiifano, Genia; Alaalatoa, Latu, Sio; Arnold, Rodda; Naisarani, Hooper (capt), Pocock.

Replacements:Uelese, Slipper, Tupou, Coleman, Salakaia-Loto, White, Toomua, O’Connor.

Quiz: Can you name England’s team from 2015 World Cup?

Knockout-stage rules

What happens if there’s a draw? If scores are tied at full time teams will play 10 minutes of extra time each way If there’s still no winner 10 minutes of sudden death will follow where the first team to score wins Finally if the scores are still tied a best-of-five place-kicking competition will take place

England v Australia rivalry

England and Australia have met 50 times. England have won 24 of those matches with Australia winning 25, a drawn game in 1997 completes the head-to-head record.

England and Australia have played each other six times in the World Cup, both sides winning three including a triumph each in the final: Australia beat England in 1991 at Twickenham and England exacted revenge in Sydney in 2003.

England have won their last six Tests against Australia, their longest winning run against their rivals. However, their last defeat against them came at the 2015 World Cup.

Media playback is not supported on this device

Billy Vunipola says he often raises his performance levels when he’s with his brother

Catch up with Rugby Union Weekly at the World Cup

Fit-again Vunipola wants to ‘build England legacy’

Key player stats

England lock Maro Itoje won seven turnovers in the pool stage, the most of any player in the competition, despite playing just two games

Wing Jonny May will win his 50th cap for England – he is sixth on England’s try-scoring list with 25 tries, but only two of those have come in World Cup matches (v Wales in 2015 and v Argentina in 2019)

Hooker Luke Cowan-Dickie has scored a try in each of his three World Cup games, only Will Greenwood has scored in more consecutive games at the tournament for England (four in 2003)

Australia’s Samu Kerevi beat 20 defenders across three appearances in the pool stage, the most of any centre in the competition and more than England’s top two centres combined (Manu Tuilagi nine, Jonathan Joseph eight).

Read More

[upshotre]

Liverpool Host Man City in Title Decider

The Premier League may just be only 10 weeks old, but indications are already pointing to a two-horse race and the title may even be decided on Sunday when Liverpool welcome Manchester City to Anfield. Both teams needed a last minute gasp to win their last matches, with The Reds maintaining their six-point lead and a victory over The Citizens tomorrow may just see Anfield celebrate its first title since the Premier League era. However, it would be game-on in the event of a win or a draw for Pep Guardiola’s side Liverpool and Manchester City can now turn attention to the Premier League after both teams were involved in the UEFA Champions League where they both top their groups and are in good stead to booking a place to the knockout stage. Liverpool top the table with 31 points and are closely trailed by Manchester City with 25 points, and will be hoping to reduce the gap to three points with a win, while the host would be looking to further widen the gap with a home victory. Anfield has not been a good hunting ground for the Citizens and indeed their manager-Pep Guardiola. His best since arriving England is last season goalless draw in which City lost a last minute penalty. Both managers have started the mind games with Guardiola first kicked off proceedings by labeling Liverpool forward, Sadio Mane as a ‘diver’ following the Reds last minute 2-1 win against Aston Villa last Saturday, in which the Senegalese attacker scored the final goal but was booked for simulation earlier on in the match. Jurgen Klopp, in turn, rejected the criticism of Mane and questioned how a manager would find time post-match to know about such details and the result of another game. The German then aimed his own dig at City by claiming he would “not mention tactical fouls” in his response to Guardiola’s comments during a pre-match press conference ahead of Genk. “I couldn’t really believe it to be honest and then I saw it,” the Liverpool manager said. “I am not sure if Pep spoke in that moment about Sadio or the team – both is not too nice to be honest. I am not too sure if I want to put oil on the fire. I am not interested in these kind of things. And I promise not to mention tactical fouls. That is maybe already too much.” Manchester City talisman Sergio Aguero would however not mind putting oil to the fire when he said the club still regard Manchester United as their biggest rivals in the Premier League compared to Liverpool. “It may be the clasico for television, but for us, the clasico, it’s the match against United,” the Argentina international told France Football. The defending champions have been plague by injury with Captain David Silva joining Oleksandr Zinchenko, Aymeric Laporte and Leroy Sane on the sidelines City may have been handed a major injury boost on Tuesday morning ahead of their clash against Liverpool this weekend, with midfielder Rodri spotted at training, although the Spaniard did not partake in the full session. Rodri has missed the last three games with a hamstring problem, however it now appears as though the midfielder is set to make a return to Pep Guardiola’s side in the coming games. The midfielder did not take part in the full session, however did briefly appear for what was described as a ‘kick about‘ and a brief ‘stretch‘. Former Arsenal Manager, Arsene Wenger indeed attest to the fact that injury to key players may cost City on Sunday. Wenger believes the absence of Laporte could hand Liverpool a major advantage in their title clash with City on Sunday. Klopp’s side are currently leading the way as they are six points ahead of City and have not yet lost a game. Meanwhile, Guardiola’s men have suffered two defeats while they are without Laporte for several months after the centre-back required knee surgery in September and Wenger believes the vulnerability in Guardiola’s defence, caused by the absence of Laporte, could give the upper hand to Klopp’s men. ‘Well we have seen in recent years that they are very tight games,’ Wenger told beIN Sports. ‘We know Man City will take the game to Liverpool, and that Liverpool will be very dangerous on the counter-attack. ‘I personally feel they could not afford to lose Laporte. ‘If you look at their results, they still play great football but they are  fractionally a bit more vulnerable defensively. ‘And that could be a big handicap against Liverpool.’ Klopp and Guardiola have been greatly influenced by one other. Guardiola’s short-passing football at Barcelona kick-started a global revolution towards pure possession, peaking with Spain’s 2010 World Cup win, before Klopp’s rock-and-roll gegenpressing at Dortmund shifted the culture back towards verticality. They are the two most influential coaches in modern football, symbiotically intertwined; Klopp’s Dortmund was a response to Guardiola’s Barcelona, his counter-press a way to catch out defenders locked in sideways passing. In their 2019 incarnations both are broadly similar, borrowing heavily from each other’s more dogmatic ideologies from earlier in their careers. Both press high and look to counter-attack in numbers; both dominate possession out of sheer necessity; both are willing to alter the length of their passes to stretch the pitch; and both coach extraordinarily detailed attacking patterns to etch flowing moves into muscle memory. The similarities end there. Guardiola remains a manager who generally builds carefully into the final third, maximising use of the half-spaces to get wingers in behind with late runs. Their playmakers are assisted by inverted full-backs who sit on the corner of the penalty area, creating a link between the wingers and attacking midfielders and helping pen the opposition deep in their own half. Guardiola’s football is metronomic, with triangles appearing all over the pitch; City want to pass the ball into an empty net, one-touch football grinding the opponent down. However, this season they have notably swung more crosses into the box, with De Bruyne playing wider to the right. Liverpool are more vertical and play with a far narrower shape than Guardiola’s team. Klopp’s 4-3-3 prioritises hard-pressing central midfielders who lack the creative guile of their opposite numbers at City, with greater focus on overlapping full-backs. The narrowness of the system opens up gaps on the outside for Alexander Arnold and Andrew Robertson, Liverpool’s most creative players, while Roberto Firmino drifts across the width to link with Sadio Mane and Mohamed Salah. These differences are the reason why, in theory, Liverpool v Man City matches are end-to-end; City dominate through the centre and Liverpool exploit the flanks, while their respective 4-3-3 and 4-2-3-1 systems layer on top of each other with significant gaps. First, City’s inverted full-backs often vacate space for Liverpool’s flying full-backs, and second, Liverpool’s ultra-narrow front three overload City’s wobbly centre-backs – but also leave too much defensive work in the half-space pockets where De Bruyne and Silva are so dangerous. However, the tactical battle is unlikely to be so dramatic. The stakes are just too high for Guardiola to open up as he did in January, when City were chasing down a seven-point gap; the safety-first, defensive football of the 0-0 draw in October is more likely. Once again, City will hold their full-backs deep, Liverpool will pack the midfield, and the two best teams in the world will play out a tense, claustrophobic affair where avoiding mistakes is prioritised over creativity. It should be engrossing and high quality, but short on goalmouth action. This will be the second season in a row that the two clubs will be involved in a tight contest for the title, after Man City narrowly beat Klopp’s men to the league title by a single point last season.

Read the full article

[torentialtribute]

With 12 wins in a row, this classy Wales team cannot stay under the radar 

The biggest Welsh team in history? Mind games. Everyone agreed with that. When Eddie Jones spoke to the opposition before he arrived in Cardiff, he only tried to mess with his head

She flatted in complacency, or caused pressure.

He tried to make them English. Trying to give Wales the problems with which his team from England lives daily.

(H) 11 March 2018

France 14-13 (H) 17 Mar

South Africa 22-20 (N) 2 June

Argentina 23-10 (A) 9 June

Argentina 19-22 (A) 16 June

Scotland 21-10 (H) 3 November

Australia 9-6 (H) 10 November

Tonga 74-24 (H) 17 November

South Africa 20-11 (H) 24 November

France 24-19 (A) 1 February 2019

Italy 26-15 (A) 9 February

England 21-13 (H) Saturday

Warren Gatland summed up the difference.

However, Wales had already equaled a national record of 11 consecutive victories since 1910.

England had delivered a very impressive performance against Ireland in Dublin and defeated the flaky French team at home.

How is that possible? How can historians, Wales, now exist in comparative ambiguity? Why is England expected so much? Boom or bust, Jones called it. & # 39; It is part of the English sport, & # 39; he said. & # 39; You love it. That's what you're talking about.

& # 39; You are happy when it breaks down and you are happy when it gets going. I can not check that. We must be good enough to see the truth, its reality. "

But asked what that reality was, Jones' answer was not enlightening." That we were not good enough today, "I added. & # 39; I do not know how many times I have to say it

& # 39; They were too good for us, and there is no shame in. There was no lack of effort, no lack of tactics We were not good enough , but we will learn from that.

& # 39; These things happen. & # 39;

Wales boss Warren Gatland said his side was allowed to travel under the radar. & # 39;

Yes, except that it is World Championship and England has almost no time to lick wounds and continue with everything.

England

The victory in Ireland seemed to be a turning point, but not that level that could have been maintained. be a good team, and every good team delivers good results on an ad hoc basis, but great teams win World Cups, and great teams are the ones who go out and time and again: for example, 12 times.

Now all sorts of comments can be made against the streak of Wales. It can be said that the 12 games do not contain a match calendar with the best team in Europe (Ireland) or the best team in the southern hemisphere, New Zealand.

Nevertheless, the run embraces three other leading countries – South Africa, Australia and Argentina – and now also England.

]

Except few see them as such. Except that few see them as such. It is one of the anomalies of Celtic rugby.

There is a reason, it is said, that Celtic players have such a passion for British and Irish lions.

This presumes that there will be in the World Cup glory, even for Irish players who have won two of their last three encounters with the All Blacks; even for Wales, which reached the semi-final in 2011.

But why should that be? Why is England in trouble after a back-to-back victory, and Wales is hiding their light after 12 consecutive?

It can not be about the media in Wales, or the public, as Jones suggests, nor are they precisely shy in disclosing their rugby skills. They did not regard their team as underdogs when the momentum was built into that second half.

Any team that can resist the corporeality of England, who can sniff their

If Wales on March 16 can beat Ireland in Cardiff, then the descent is at least

Ireland beats the All Blacks, so if Wales defeats Ireland, there is a glimpse of the possible endgame in Yokohama. Why would it be different?

& # 39; Give Wales the honor, give them a big rap, & # 39; Jones instructed, as if this might somehow reduce them. Dan Biggar, a game-changing presence and finisher in the true sense of the word, summed up the essence of this Welsh team.

& # 39; Winning is a habit and even if we have been at our best, we have found a way. ]

& # 39; England is strong, they have had a very good shape. But if you play them, the only thing that matters is to get over the line. If we did not win, England would probably have gone to take the Grand Slam reasonably comfortably.

& # 39; So it was a bigger game for us than they. We stayed within a score and knew how to grind. We have physically fought against them.

& # 39; Five of our 12 wins have been away from home, so that means we are now building real depth.

& # 39; Going from toe to toe with this Team from England – I think it's just as good as a team from England, because it's possible to play against – shows a real hunger of the boys. Physically, in the last 20 minutes, we really matched a huge package. & # 39; We like to play rugby. & # 39;

& # 39; We like to play rugby. We know what we are about. & # 39;

As we will all do when Wales can go to Japan as the No. 1 team in Europe. Win the third Grand Slam of Gatland team as Wales coach – the winning run is 14 and includes wins on all countries in the seven best bar of rugby, New Zealand, and there will be no more under the radar

A Welsh team with this potential can not remain a well-kept secret in the World Cup year. Nor would they.

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[mayramoss-blog1]

Bruno Genesio has given Lyon their pride back but could lose his job

Bruno Genesio has hit several highs in his time at Lyon, but the lows have stuck in the minds of many fans.

Of the managers left in the Champions League, Bruno Genesio is surely the only one with an uncertain future.

Genesio is out of contract at Lyon at the end of the season and has no idea if he will be offered new terms. On Tuesday night, after Lyon drew 0-0 with Barcelona in their round-of-16 first leg, Jean-Michel Aulas, the club's chairman, insisted that a decision would be made before the end of March.

Lyon sit third in Ligue 1, they are still very much capable of knocking out Barca and reaching the quarterfinals of the UCL and they have a talented young squad partly assembled and nurtured by this coach -- and yet they are still not sure about him. If Aulas were convinced that Genesio is the man to take his club forward, he would have offered him a new deal already. The fact that he hasn't shows the extent of the problem.

On one hand, Genesio ticks a lot of the boxes. He is Lyon born and bred, and Lyon are his club. He played most of his professional career with them. He has been part of the coaching staff (including in the academy) for years and represents the values of the club. He also comes across well and is very likeable. He has the support of much of the French media, and has had great results against top teams; beating Paris Saint-Germain twice at home in the last two seasons, Manchester City at the Etihad and drawing with them at home after leading twice. He did the double against arch rivals Saint-Etienne two seasons in a row.

Since he took over as manager in December 2015, Genesio has won 92 of his 168 matches in charge, a win ratio of 55 percent, with 34 draws. At times, the football produced by his team has been fantastic.

ESPN+ is America's home for a host of professional soccer leagues from around the world, highlighted by Italy's Serie A, Major League Soccer, UEFA Nations League and English FA Cup. | ESPN+ schedule

ESPN FC's experts ranked the best men's players and managers in world football. Check out the list.

Fear, paranoia, difficult behaviour and constant battling with club officials and players led to the inevitable, writes Rob Dawson.

When Boca Juniors and River Plate were set to meet in Argentina's most important match, Buenos Aires lost its mind, writes Wright Thompson.

On the other hand, Genesio has been clueless in certain matches, usually against smaller teams. His inability to motivate and focus his players in those games has been quite incredible. The team has been frankly dull at times, like against Reims at home (1-1) and away (0-1) earlier in the season. And a lot of fans, especially the club's ultras, want him out at the end of the season. Despite some ups, they have had enough of the downs. They deployed a banner against him at the end of last season and regularly ask for his sacking. His detractors argue that with the quality of the squad at his disposal, Genesio should not be 19 points behind PSG in Ligue 1, should not have lost five times already domestically and should play at a high level regardless of the opposition.

At 52, Genesio is a decisive figure. He is either really loved or really disliked. His own inconsistency has cast a doubt over his ability to take this team to the next level. Lyon have a very good squad, full of great potential, while the next generation of Lyon players currently playing with the reserves team (Rayan Cherki and Maxence Caqueret, just to name the two most talented) is promising too. They need the right manager in charge.

Is it Genesio? Aulas will have to decide. The manager wants to stay, and he will wait for March 31 with angst.

Between now and then, his team will play big games against Monaco and Barcelona, plus Caen in the French Cup quarterfinals. But he must also get results against Toulouse, Strasbourg and Montpellier before the next international break. Will it be enough to see exactly what Genesio is capable of? Aulas and his board have probably seen enough already, but they are clearly struggling to come to a decision on his future.

Genesio is said to be quietly confident. He is convinced he deserves to stay in the job, and his ego has been a big part of this contractual saga. The Lyon manager has compared himself with Pep Guardiola, a comparison that's really difficult to carry. "Pep Genesio," as he is amusingly nicknamed in France by the people who don't like him, will now find out very soon what his future holds.

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[sbknews]

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Ten out of ten: Rea extends perfect run with Argentina doubleARGWorldSBK

However tough the going gets, he always finds a way to get the job done. Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) claimed his fifth consecutive double of the 2018 MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship at the Circuito San Juan Villicum in sensational fashion. The champion was forced to dig deep to take the Argentinian double ahead of Xavi Fores (Barni Racing Team), but now holds another record to his name for the most consecutive wins in a World Superbike season, beating Colin Edwards and Neil Hodgson’s previous streak of nine victories.

The opening laps at the Circuito San Juan Villicum were amongst the most chaotic of the entire 2018 season. Fores was quick off the marks from pole, but his partners on the Race Two front row suffered much worse fates: Tom Sykes (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) immediately fell to the fringes of the top ten, while Eugene Laverty (Milwaukee Aprilia) crashed out unopposed in lap three whilst riding in second place.

It would be a big understatement to say that Rea’s race start went less smoothly than in Race One. A strong start pushed him up into the top five at the lights, but a succession of mistakes through the end of lap one and the first half of lap two saw him lose positions to Alex Lowes (Pata Yamaha Official WorldSBK Team) and Chaz Davies (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati), nearly falling one further under pressure from Marco Melandri (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati).

The Argentinian fans would not have to wait long for the comeback. Rea saw himself past Davies after the Welshman went in too hot at turn 1, then made good use of the back straight slipstream to edge smoothly past Lowes. A mistake from Razgatlioglu also left the Turkish rookie in the Northern Irishman’s wake. Meanwhile, a bruising battle for fourth saw Davies, Melandri and Lowes exchange places turn after turn.

At the four-lap mark, Fores had already opened a huge three-second gap taking advantage of Rea’s troubled start. This didn’t last: at a rate of nearly a second per lap, Rea caught up with the Spaniard and fought his way through to the front inside lap eight. Fores immediately pounced back at the back straight, but the Kawasaki’s pace was too much on the day and the weekend and, after moving back into the front half a lap later, Rea blasted into the lead and head-first into his tenth consecutive win, unchallenged from that point forwards.

A cool second for Fores means that he is now the official independent riders champion, thanks to his fifth podium of the year. Marco Melandri managed to return to the rostrum after a fantastic race-long duel with Davies, who finished fourth and again increases his gap with Michael van der Mark (Pata Yamaha Official WorldSBK Team) to 24 points, after the Dutchman ended Race Two in ninth.

Tom Sykes managed to climb back to fifth following a strong second half to his race, with Lowes in sixth and Razgatlioglu back in seventh, after fading in the late stages. An anticlimactic ending to the rookie’s Argentinian round, but he still manages to claim the best points haul of his WorldSBK career over a race weekend. Lorenzo Savadori (Milwaukee Aprilia) finished Race Two in eighth, whilst Jake Gagne (Red Bull Honda World Superbike Team) made it into the top ten for only the third time this season. Local hero Leandro Mercado managed to finish in twelfth, after crashing in Race One.

That’s a wrap from San Juan!

P1 – Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) “It’s been a tough day and night, I spent most of last night hugging the toilet, so a massive thanks to Alba, our Performance Manager and also the Clinica Mobile for sorting me out. At least I was able to keep fluids onboard during the race, but I don’t feel so good now though! I want to thank my team, they gave me a great bike this weekend and with a new track for everybody we hit the ground running and figured it out faster than most. Our bike was so good on the tyres at the end of the race and honestly I was just steering it round, so a massive thanks to them – this is dreamy, ten races on the bounce it’s really not normal! It’s mad and I just want to enjoy this moment and it’ll certainly make that long flight home worthwhile.”

P2 – Xavi Fores (BARNI Racing Team) “I missed the podium so today I was focyused on getting it again after Magny Cours. I started so strongly and was able to keep the pace, and I was pushing so hard but Jonny overtook me and then I kept my rhythm until the end. Really happy for this second place and also for the Independent Championship, and I want to say thanks to my team for the job this season. I’m looking forward to Qatar and I want to finish the season on the podium again.”

P3 – Marco Melandri (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) “Actually today I’m a bit disappointed because after three or four laps I made a mistake and went wide at Turn 7, and came back on behind Savadori. I then got past the two Yamahas and Chaz was pulling away, but I was pushing so hard to come back and after I saw Xavi but it was impossible to catch him. I’m sad because without the mistake I could’ve gone second and maybe tried to stay with Jonny, but anyway I’m happy for two podiums and one Superpole – so we’re looking good.”

#ARGWorldSBK at Circuito San Juan Villicum: Race 2 1. Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) 2. Xavi Fores (BARNI Racing Team) +3.273 3. Marco Melandri (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) +4.660

Championship Standings after Race 2, Round 12 1. Jonathan Rea (GBR) Kawasaki (520 points) 2. Chaz Davies (GBR) Ducati (348 points) 3. Michael van der Mark (NED) Yamaha (324 points)

World Superbike

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[nishantwap]

Does the show put on by Adonis Stevenson and Badou Jack warrant an encore?

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Does the show put on by Adonis Stevenson and Badou Jack warrant an encore?

The opening bell: Immediate rematch or nah?

Light heavyweight world champion Adonis Stevenson retained his title for the ninth time when he and former two-division titlist Badou Jack fought to an intense draw Saturday in Toronto in an outstanding fight.

So the question is, should there be an immediate rematch? Stevenson (29-1-1, 24 KOs), 40, of Montreal, said he is willing to do it again, and Jack (21-1-4, 13 KOs), 34, said he wants the rematch, but with the caveat that it take place in his adopted hometown of Las Vegas. If that’s a deal-breaker, there likely won’t be a sequel because Stevenson’s past criminal conviction does not allow him to obtain a work visa to fight in the United States.

Adonis Stevenson made his ninth title defense — but just barely — Saturday night, after Badou Jack took it to the tiring champion and appeared to be the busier fighter in the second half of their bout, which ended in a majority draw.

Gary Russell Jr. won a unanimous decision against mandatory challenger Joseph Diaz Jr. to retain his featherweight world title on Saturday night at the MGM National Harbor.

Josh Warrington would have no qualms about travelling to Belfast to take on Carl Frampton, but the new IBF featherweight champion is doubtful a bout can be arranged for this summer.

2 Related

The fight certainly was fan-friendly, and a rematch would probably be another good one. Stevenson was in control for most of the first half, with Jack coming on very strong in the second half to produce a majority draw — 114-114 on two cards and 115-113 for Jack. Few could quarrel with that scoring, though the rounds Jack won seemed to be by far bigger margins than those won by Stevenson, a southpaw.

There were several momentum shifts in the fight, including in the 10th round when Stevenson landed a brutal right hand to the body that badly hurt Jack and nearly dropped him. But Jack came back and pushed an exhausted Stevenson hard, hurting him in the final round.

I’m torn about an immediate rematch. It was a good fight that does deserve another chapter. But I don’t necessarily think it needs to be the next fight.

There is the issue of Stevenson’s inability to fight in the U.S. There is also the fact that he is obligated to make a mandatory defense against interim titlist Oleksandr Gvozdyk, and it has been (for a variety of reasons) almost five years since he has made a mandatory. Gvozdyk (15-0, 12 KOs) has been ruled next by the WBC, although side deals are always possible.

I also look at the division and see many quality fighters who could make good fights with either Stevenson or Jack, be it the winner of the fight between WBO titleholder Sergey Kovalev and Eleider Alvarez, or titleholders Dmitry Bivol (WBA) and Artur Beterbiev (IBF). I’m usually down for a new fight before a rematch unless the fight was truly special. Stevenson-Jack was excellent, so if there’s a rematch, cool. But if not, that’s also OK by me.

Gary Russell Jr. made a much-awaited appearance in a boxing ring Saturday, and it was a success. AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana

Welcome back: Gary Russell Jr.

Featherweight world titlist Gary Russell Jr. is as talented as any fighter in boxing, probably has the fastest hands in the business and is fun to watch. The only complaint is that we don’t get to see him fight enough, as he has fought only four times since 2015, when he won his belt.

But Russell (29-1, 17 KOs), 29, of Capitol Heights, Maryland, ended another one-year layoff on Saturday for his third defense, which took place in Oxon Hill, Maryland, just 15 minutes from his home. He made a mandatory defense against fellow southpaw Joseph Diaz Jr. (26-1, 14 KOs), 25, of South El Monte, California, and reminded us all that he is a special talent.

Russell lit up Diaz with wildly quick combinations and a relentless body attack even after hurting his right hand early in the fight. Diaz was game, tried hard and also pounded the body, but in the end the more talented fighter got the job done, as Russell won 117-111, 117-111 and a way-too-close 115-113. The question now is, will we see Russell fight again before the end of the year? Hopefully.

The next step: If Russell’s hand is OK and he does lace ’em up once more this year, the ideal fight — and the one Russell says he wants — will be a unification fight with the winner of the June 9 rematch between titlist Leo Santa Cruz (whom Russell beat in the amateurs) and secondary titlist Abner Mares. Theoretically, it should be an easy fight to make, given that all three fighters are with adviser Al Haymon and fight on Showtime.

Josh Warrington became featherweight champion on Saturday and set himself up for even bigger things. Dave Thompson/PA via AP

Breakout performance: Josh Warrington

Though Josh Warrington (27-0, 6 KOs), 27, was fighting at Elland Road Football Ground, the outdoor soccer stadium in his hometown of Leeds, England, he was the underdog against featherweight world titlist Lee Selby (26-2, 9 KOs), 31, of Wales, on Saturday.

But though Warrington doesn’t have much pop, he’s a good boxer with endless determination, which he put to good use as he ended Selby’s reign in his fifth title defense. The fight was made available in the United States for free on Showtime’s various social media platforms.

Officially, the verdict was a split decision, 116-112 and 115-113 for Warrington and 115-113 for Selby, but it should have been a clear win for Warrington, who took control from the outset and maintained it throughout the bout. Warrington was also aided by an accidental head butt in the second round that opened a bad cut over Selby’s left eye. It bled for the rest of the fight, as did a cut over his right eye from another accidental butt a few rounds later. Selby showed heart to hang in the fight despite the bloodshed, but this was Warrington’s night in the fight of his life.

“I can’t put into words how I feel. I got into the ring tonight with the expectation of the city on my shoulders,” Warrington said. “I outboxed the boxer tonight. I’m overcome with emotion. We worked on game plans, but that all went out of the window and it was sheer grit and determination, and this crowd got me through tonight.”

The next step: Well, it’s probably not the next fight, but perhaps after one defense there’s a good chance we’ll see a major showdown between Warrington and Northern Ireland star and former titlist Carl Frampton. As for Selby, he plans to move up to junior lightweight.

Fights you may have missed

Saturday at Mulvane, Kansas

Flyweight Nico Hernandez (5-0, 4 KOs) KO1 Szilveszter Kanalas (14-8, 9 KOs).

Hernandez, 22, a 2016 U.S. Olympic bronze medalist, was in his first scheduled 12-round bout and didn’t need much of it. He thrilled his hometown fans from nearby Wichita, Kansas, with a quick destruction of Kanalas, 19, of Hungary, who was knocked out for the seventh time in eight defeats. Hernandez hurt Kanalas with a right hand followed by a left to the body that dropped him. He barely beat the count and went down again moments later after eating a pair of jabs. Referee Steve Smoger counted him out at 2 minutes, 52 seconds.

Saturday at Durango, Mexico

Middleweight Jose Carlos Paz (22-7-1, 12 KOs) W10 Omar Chavez (36-5-1, 24 KOs), scores: 98-93, 97-94 (twice).

Paz, 27, of Argentina, came to Chavez’s home country and scored a mild upset in a clear decision win over one of the fighting sons of the legendary Julio Cesar Chavez Sr. Returning to the ring off a nine-month layoff, Omar Chavez, 28, barely threw any punches and held a lot as he lost his second 10-round decision in a row. The more aggressive Paz rebounded nicely from his last fight, a third-round knockout loss in February to Jaime Munguia, who went on to win a junior middleweight world title on March 12.

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[winterskeletonlive-blog]

#Watch Winter Olympics 2018 Skeleton Live Streaming Online Link

Watch Winter Olympics 2018 Skeleton Live TV>>>>

The 2018 Winter Olympics in PyeongChang, South Korea are right around the corner! That means it's time to watch sports you might not have seen in four years. To help you feel at least a little more informed—either to impress your friends or fake your way through a conversation with an actual expert—SI will be providing rookie's guides to each of the 15 sports. These will be published daily, Monday through Friday, from December 4–22. What is skeleton? Skeleton is not a competition where each athlete is put through an X-ray machine so they can see who has the most bones. That would be so much more boring than what skeleton actually is—men and women flying down a bobsled track at 90 mph with their face an inch off the ice. It’s basically just like luge, except instead of laying on their backs, the competitors are positioned face-down, head-first. The sledder’s lower legs dangle off the back of the sled so they have to make sure they don’t hit the ice while also staying as flat as possible to maintain peak aerodynamic flow. You can steer by shifting your weight. How was the sport invented? Skeleton traces its roots to an ice track in the Swiss resort town of St. Moritz, where British and American tourists began sliding head-first down a track called the Cresta Run before the turn of the 20th century. (You can still ride the Cresta Run—if you a member of its club, and not a woman.) When did it come to the Olympics? St. Moritz hosted the Winter Games in 1928 and 1948, so skeleton was included due to its history there and the Cresta Run was used as the track. It didn’t return until the 2002 games in Salt Lake City. Why do they call it skeleton? I always thought the name was derived from the dangerous nature of the sport, but it actually comes from the equipment. The first sleds used in skeleton were the bones of a bobsled. How does the competition work? A total of 50 people will qualify, 30 men and 20 women, though the field won’t be set until mid-January. There are only six medals awarded—gold, silver and bronze for men and women. The winner is whoever clocks the fastest time after four runs. Is it dangerous?

Holy crap, yes. Not only are you hurtling down the track at speeds of over 90 mph, the sled can weigh as much 90 pounds (though there are rules limiting the combined maximum weight of the sled and its rider). The last thing you want is to lose control of a heavy object with sharp metal blades and get trapped in a frozen tube with it. The only protection the sledders wear is a helmet, which has a chin guard in case you dip you head to low and scrape your face on the ice. Who is good at it? The U.S. has won the most Olympic medals (eight), followed by Great Britain (six) and Canada (four). Switzerland, Italy, Latvia, Germany, Austria and Russia are the only other countries to medal but sledders have represented countries all the way from Argentina to Australia. Laura Deas is "motivated" to win a skeleton Olympic medal for Great Britain after failing to qualify for the 2014 Games in Sochi. The 29-year-old from Wrexham is the top ranked British women and is fifth in this season's world standings. In January the GB team will be selected for the 2018 Games in Pyeongchang, South Korea, on 9-25 February."I'm feeling as confident as I could be at this moment, knowing selection is out of my control," she said."I know I'm having a good season, I'm consistently in and around the top six which is in the target. With three races to go I am feeling pretty good."Deas is seven places above Britain's 2014 gold medallist Lizzy Yarnold in the International Bobsleigh and Skeleton Federation (IBSF) rankings. When asked if she could can win a medal in Pyeongchang in what would be her first Olympics - if Deas makes selection on 22 January in Stockport - the Welsh slider said: "Absolutely."That's what I have been aiming to do for a long time, the fact that I missed out on Sochi... four years ago has really given me that extra motivation to want to be there, to become an Olympian and ultimately be on the podium."Deas missed out on a European medal by 0.01 seconds at the latest round of the World Cup in Innsbruck, Austria, this week - finishing fourth of the Europeans and sixth overall in an event won by Elena Nikitina. In November 2017, Nikitina was stripped of her Olympic bronze medal and banned from future Games by the International Olympic Committee (IOC), for breaching anti-doping rules at Sochi 2014. But the IBSF has allowed the Russian to compete on the world circuit after lifting its initial ban. Nikitina is appealing against the IOC decision at the Court of Arbitration for Sport.

The IOC has banned Russia from competing at the 2018 Winter Olympics, but Russian athletes who can prove they are clean will be allowed to compete in Pyeongchang under a neutral flag."It's frustrating because I want to be competing on a level playing field, and it's frustrating to know, with evidence, that it's not the case at the moment," Deas said."But at the same time I know it is counterproductive to get too caught up in it."Although I'm trying to stay up to date with what is going on, I don't want to become obsessed with it because I think, in the long run, that doesn't help me and my performance."Granted, we don’t have winter in Nigeria, but there’s no denying we’ll be the envy of other country at the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeong Chang, South Korea. Our bobsled team, which is the first out of Africa, is already taking media attention (They were even on The Ellen DeGeneres Show!).And right now it seems we have another bit of history waiting to be made as Simidele Adeagbo is one race away from becoming the first woman skeleton athlete from Africa to take part in the competition.Adeagbo is a retired track and field athlete, having held the National Collegiate Athletic Association All-American and triple jump school record for four times. Her interest in skeleton was sparked six months ago when she heard about the amazing Nigerian bobsled team. Determined to shatter the glass ceiling in athletics, she went for a trial in August and was successful. Because there are no ice tracks in Johannesburg where she lives, Adeagbo prepares by watching videos of past runs and also using tips and tricks compiled by other athletes. When she can, she travels to Canada where she trains on ice tracks that run as far as 1.5km long.But with these preparations, there can be changes in the weather which make skeleton quite unpredictable. The 36-year-old, who is in love with Davido’s ‘Fia’ because it reminds her that what she’s doing is “for the continent and for people back home”, isn’t disturbed by this. Although she injured her chin in her last competition, there’s no stopping her from the fifth race in Lake Placid, New York, which will see her achieve that dream of qualifying for the Winter Olympics on January 11, 2018.Russian Elena Nikitina, who is banned from competing in the Winter Olympics, won the latest leg of the women's World Cup skeleton as Olympic champion Lizzy Yarnold suffered another disappointing day. Yarnold was 16th in Innsbruck - the third race in a row she has failed to make the top 10 - and was again outperformed by team-mate Laura Deas, who was sixth. The event doubled as the European Championships, in which Deas missed out on bronze by 0.01 seconds. In the men's race, Latvia's Martins Dukurs won another great tussle against South Korea's Yun Sungbin.Lölling’s stellar 2017 also included a storming run in the mixed team event at the IBSF World Championships in Königsee (GER) in February. With her Germany 1 team lying fourth after the men’s skeleton and two-women bob runs, Lölling posted a new track record of 51.23 to catapult her team into the lead ahead of Russia. She then looked on as Johannes Lochner secured gold with the fastest run in the two-man bob leg. Five days later, watched by IOC President Thomas Bach, 22-year-old Lölling became the youngest ever women’s world champion in her sport. Jumping into a 0.06-second lead over compatriot and defending champion Tina Hermann on the first run, Lölling maintained her position when the second run was cancelled due to heavy snow.Staying ahead on the third run, Lölling beat Hermann on the fourth by 0.25 seconds. Sochi 2014 gold medallist Lizzy Yarnold of Great Britain completed the podium, nearly three-quarters of a second behind the young German.

It was left to team-mate Hermann to sum up her performance: “Jacqueline is on incredible form. It was pretty clear that it would be really tough to beat her here.”Lölling was just 12 when she took up skeleton in 2007. Three years later she appeared in her first international competition: a European Cup meet on the Olympic track in Cesana Pariol (ITA). She won both races. Still only 15 when she claimed her first national title in December 2011, Lölling earned a place on Germany’s team at the first Winter Youth Olympic Games in Innsbruck in 2012. The competition was reduced to a single run because of bad weather, but the German teen’s superiority shone through, as she won gold by nearly a second from Austria’s Carina Mair and Canada’s Carli Brockway. A bronze medallist at the 2012 World Junior Championships in Igls (AUT), Lölling traded up to gold in 2014 in Winterberg (GER) and retained the title the following year in Altenberg (GER). That second world junior crown earned her a place at the 2015 IBSF World Championships in Winterberg, where, having just turned 20, she won silver behind Yarnold. Rising to the top. The German prodigy made her World Cup debut in the 2015/16 season, gaining podium finishes in her first three races: a third place in Altenberg and second places in Winterberg and Königsee. Lölling finished fourth at the European Championships in St Moritz (SUI) and was runner-up to Hermann in the national championships. She then scored two more podium finishes to take second place behind her compatriot in the overall standings. Her senior career took off to a flying start on 6 January 2017, when she won the World Cup event in Altenberg. A week later, Lölling claimed the European title by 0.16 seconds from Austria’s Janine Flock in Winterberg, followed by her world championship double. Her winning streak continued with a third victory in the World Cup final at the Alpensia Sliding Centre, which doubled up as the PyeongChang 2018 skeleton test event. Lölling was fastest in both runs, setting an inaugural track record of 52.75 on her second run. This ranked her first in the overall World Cup standings with a total of 1,591 points. Lölling now has her sights set on Olympic gold in PyeongChang. Judging by the start of her 2017/18 IBSF World Cup season, that goal is well within her grasp. Third on the opening weekend in Lake Placid (USA), she followed up with wins in Whistler (CAN) in late November and Winterberg in early December to place her at the top of the standings. Though Germany is the world’s pre-eminent force in the luge and bobsleigh, it has never won an Olympic skeleton title and has just two medals to its name: a silver for Kerstin Szymkowiak and a bronze for Anja Huber behind Great Britain’s Amy Williams at Vancouver 2010. In Lölling, they have an athlete who is fully capable of ending her country’s title drought at PyeongChang 2018.From a 17-year-old snowboarding star to a gold-medal-hungry women’s ice hockey team, Team USA’s athletes competing in the 2018 Winter Olympic Games in Pyeongchang, South Korea, are looking to make a mark. The official roster for Team USA will not be finalized until weeks before the 2018 Winter Olympics start Feb. 9, but the first competitors in the 15 Winter Olympic sports have already been chosen — and they each bring a unique story to the games. Maame Biney is a 17-year-old who already made history as the first black woman to qualify for Team USA’s short track speedskating team. Making his return in 2018, Gus Kenworthy is a freestyle skiing star who could become the first openly gay male athlete to compete at a Winter Games. And Chloe Kim is a 17-year-old snowboarding phenom who is the favorite to win gold in the sport for Team USA.Matthew Antoine slides back into Olympic competition after earning bronze in Sochi in 2014 and completing several years of successful international appearances. The Wisconsin-based athlete is looking to get another medal in the Winter Olympic sport this time around. He may be joined by contenders John Daly, who took a break from the sport after Sochi, and Nathan Crumpton, who is hoping to make his first Olympic appearance.

With a successful 2015-16 season, Annie O’Shea became the fastest of the women’s team and is poised to be one to watch in Pyeongchang. Olympian Katie Uhlaender is also trying to best her fourth-place finish in Sochi.The Olympic sport of skeleton is not for the faint of heart. Sprinting down an icy track, diving on a tiny sled head first, rocketing toward the bottom at speeds of upwards of 90 mph -- what kind of person would subject themselves to such danger for Olympic gold? His name is Matt Antoine. In 2002, Antoine was just like the rest of us, watching the Olympics on TV. The sport of skeleton caught his eye, and a year later Antoine headed to Lake Placid, New York to give it a try.“You’re kind of at the mercy of the track your first few times down,” Antoine said. “After the first run I knew this was something I wanted to pursue and I was going to keep going after.”He was hooked, and although he was cut from his first skeleton camp, Antoine kept sprinting down that icy track toward an Olympic medal. As a member of Team USA during the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Antoine took home bronze – the first skeleton medal for an American in 12 years.“It was an amazing experience in 2014, especially having family members there,” Antoine said. “Being an Olympic athlete, having your support system of your family … it’s not just you, it’s about them as well. Antoine said sharing that moment with his support system meant “just as much or more to them than it did for me.”Now, nearly a decade and a half after his first run, the Phoenix resident is preparing for his last.“I’ve always approached the sport that it could end tomorrow and so in my prep for 2018 I’m definitely looking at it like it’s probably my last Olympics,” he said.

[apsbicepstraining]

Andy Murray too good for Juan Martin del Potro in fine French Open battle

Andy Murray had to excavate late to win the first two adjusts before running out a 7-6, 7-5, 6-0 win against Argentinas Juan Martn del Potro

Andy Murray experiences few ordeals more than proving people wrong and so the most tenacious gentleman in tennis goes into the second week of the French Open for the eighth time in 10 inspects with a echoing endorsement from the rival he trounced to get there, Juan Martn del Potro.

There were plenty of parties at the start of the week who horror the Scots form and fitness are currently in such a low ebb he had no chance of reaching the final for a second year in a row, and decreased prospects of going past the quarter-finals. He is not quite there yet, but he is in the fourth round again, and deservedly so after beating the occasionally inspired Argentinian by the misleading rating of 7-6( 10 -8 ), 7-5, 6-0 in precisely under 3 hour on a mild and agreeable afternoon on Court Philippe Chatrier , not long before the rainwater arrived.

Del Potro, becoming his first appearance here in five years old after the most wretched meter with hurt, said of their 10 th meeting, and exclusively the second to finish in straight organizes: It was another good battle. The first two starts[ took] two hours and a half, actually long sets.

Andy, hes very smart on courtroom. He has all the films, but also is great mentally. Thats why hes No1 in the world and I know how important this tournament is for him. I bid him all the best and, hopefully, he can go far.

A few players on the Tour would not annoyance with such compliments. But Del Potro is a man apart, encouraging sincere excitement in the crowd as he campaigned with tigerish intent to draw best available out of Murray. Del Potro should have won the first move but a scald forehand in the tie-break was out by so tiny a margin that the chair umpire conferred with the line judge before awarding the degree and set to Murray.

The second chassis was just as intense but Murray gradually got the upper hand over Del Potro, who was supposed to take drugs for a groin strain he picked up in his coincide against Nicols Almagro two days before. He did not exploit that as an excuse and told you he played sting free, but it was clear he was not moving as well as he might have wished.

Partly that was down to what he identified as Murrays court intelligence. There were so many artful exchanges between these two fabulou actors that it was difficult to picking when the win kill would arrive. Murray concentrated on impeding as numerous dances away from his resists lethal forehand as he could, then, having peppered him on the other side, employed the open court to tease him with drop shots.

Del Potro was just surprised by the strategy and, when not slicing backhand returns to keep the phase going, ran around those fires to unleash his forehand. He struck 16 clean winners with the fire, but only one in the final situate, which came and travelled in 28 hours. Fighting to the end, however, he made Murray save three break-dance items before completing the bagel.

Murray was in understandably good spirits although little has unsettled his feeling for some time, prevail or forget. The self-absorption of his youth is long gone, even if there is the odd on-court explosion still. He said after got a couple of such outbursts in his second pair, against Martin Klizan on Thursday, that he sometimes conflicts to contain those emotions.

Perhaps it is no bad situation, though. If he were to go totally against his true nature he might generate confusion that would further erode the commonwealth of his recreation leader. He had it on here, with simply a fleeting cus or admonishment for his container, where Ivan Lendl sat in his customary position of expressionless concentration.

By the standards of a year ago, when he propelled the most extraordinary assault on Novak Djokovics No 1 macrocosm grading around this time, he has under-performed. He arrived here having lost early in tournaments to excellent but lower-rated rivals in Dominic Thiem( Barcelona ), Albert Ramos Violas( Monte Carlo ), Borna Coric( Madrid ) and the dangerous and unpredictable Fabio Fognini( Rome ).

Del Potro seems dejected at the net after the notes that cost him the first situated. Image: Christophe Ena/ AP

But Murrays clay game is improving by the coincide. He agreed that this might have been his best 2017 testifying. I played some good parallels beginning of the year, he said, but emphatically, in the clay courtroom season, those second and third defines were the best I have played, for sure.

He might have paid scant attention to the pessimists, but his climate is hoisted. He is ready to raise his height another notch, as all the really good participates do when it matters. He expects to get better, because he has done it so many times before.

Last year here, he reached the final after coming close to suffer in his first two accords, each of which went to five primeds. This time, he took four locateds to overcome Andrey Kuznetsov and Klizan before affecting an foreboding trounce against Del Potro.

To be playing him this early on in the smash is not easy, but it can be a very positive happening, Murray said. You play person that good, perhaps youre a little more switched on. Your focus is maybe a little bit higher.

There was one moment of minor discomfort when he was asked why he was shushing himself.

He arced his eyebrows and responded, I dont know who you are I was doing it. Why does it stuff? Whats the big cheese? I dont get it. If I say something and you guys ask me what I was saying, if I say nothing, “youre asking me” why I dont say anything. What do you want me to do? What do you are willing to to say? Its irrelevant. Whats relevant is what happens during the points.

Hes not wrong.

Kyle Edmund falls short but glad with progress

The last-place experience two British participates drew it to the fourth round of the French Open, the Beatles were No1 in the charts and Harold Macmillan was serving out his closing months in ten Downing Street. Kyle Edmund, 22, might not have listened to From Me to You or know who Supermac was, but the 22 -year-old with the booming forehand would dearly have loved to equal that 1963 achievement alongside Andy Murray at this tournament.

For long elongates of his third-round equal against Kevin Anderson, Edmund looked like being part of a little bit of tennis history, but he found the resilience of the towering, strong South African too much after practically four hours of grinding tennis on the compact Court 2.

Anderson, seven situates behind Edmund in the world standings at 56, outlasted him to triumph 6-7( 6-8 ), 7-6( 7-4 ), 5-7, 6-1, 6-4 and book a neighbourhood in the last 16 against the former US Open champion Marin Cilic, who did short work of the Spaniard Feliciano Lpez, to triumph 6-1, 6-3, 6-3.

Edmund was simultaneously disappointed and satisfied, pointing out that another five-setter was a helpful part of his tennis education, especially as he hold back well physically. Now, he says, he is looking forward to Wimbledon, with preparation at Queens and Eastbourne defying the suggestion that it was a surface on which he did not detect comfortable.

I dont fairly remember me ever saying that I dont like grass, he said in his ultra-polite practice. I exactly experience playing on clay and hard much more. Well, I play on them a lot more. So I have more hour on them.

There was little in this match for nearly three hours, as they sold big cheese from behind or near the baseline. Each of them loaded up with full-force groundstrokes, averaging only three shots a rallying until near the end of the equal. As Edmund said after his quick-fire win over Renzo Olivo in the second round: Theres not much place having artilleries if you dont use them.

Jim Courier said after that performance that Edmund given the opportunity to be a top-1 0 player. Apart from a plunge during the fourth set on Saturday, he examined worthy of the assessment.

Anderson came to life down the extend to apply the pressure back on Britains No2, although shatters were hard to come by for each of them. Edmund harboured from love-4 0 for 3-3 in the fifth but had not been able sustain his stage all the way to the end.

The post Andy Murray too good for Juan Martin del Potro in fine French Open battle appeared first on apsbicepstraining.com.

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Scotland at crossroads on quest for Rugby World Cup quarter-finals

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Scotland at crossroads on quest for Rugby World Cup quarter-finals

Winger Darcy Graham is the only player in the Scotland XV who started in the win over Samoa

Rugby World Cup Pool A: Scotland v Russia Venue: Shizuoka Stadium, Fukuroi CityDate:Wednesday, 9 OctoberKick-off:08:15 BST Coverage:Live commentary on BBC Radio 5 live and BBC Radio Scotland, live text commentary on BBC Sport website & app

At the heart of Ogasayama Nature Park in Shizuoka Prefecture lies the Ecopa Stadium, a place put on the sporting map when Ronaldinho lobbed David Seaman from halfway down the road to Kakegawa City to put England out of the 2002 football World Cup.

The venue had to wait 17 years for another moment of magnitude – and when it came, the earth fairly shook.

What Ronaldinho did in sinking England, Kenki Fukuoka did in shocking Ireland with the try that led to one of the great sensations of this, or any other, Rugby World Cup.

Scotland will be hoping that there isn’t a third piece of drama associated with the Ecopa come Wednesday, when they play Russia in their penultimate group game.

Everybody knows how this must shake down for the Scots, but here is the landscape one more time. They have to beat the Russians, available at 50-1 if you’re brave, with a four-try bonus point to boot.

They then have to go on to Yokohama for the final game against Japan and take four more points from the game than the hosts.

Wilson welcomes ‘massive burden’ for second string Scots

Scotland make 14 changes for Russia

Scotland have never won three Tests in a row in a World Cup, but that’s what they must do now. They’ve never beaten a team above them in the rankings at a World Cup, but that’s another hurdle they must clear if they are to make it to the last eight.

Russia will not go quietly

Yokohama on Sunday can wait, for there is business to be done in Shizuoka first. Scotland will surely get the job done against Russia, but the Bears are no pushovers.

Scottish player after Scottish player and Scottish coach after Scottish coach has spoken about them this week and it’s abundantly obvious that they respect Russia’s challenge. They don’t fear it, but they know that Russia bring a physical intensity that will take some quelling.

It took Japan and Ireland more than an hour to put them away for good. The team’s attrition is exemplified by their openside flanker, Tagir Gadzhiev, from the tourist no-go region of Dagestan. Gadzhiev is a ferocious player and once his World Cup is done, he will surely get a contact playing in more illustrious surroundings than the Russian league.

This is Russia’s final game of the tournament and anybody who thinks they will go quietly hasn’t seen them play.

Coached by Wales’ Lyn Jones, they have a clever kicking fly-half, a solid scrum that was good enough to win two scrum penalties against Ireland and a defence that takes a fair bit of breaking down. They struggle to score, so they are built to frustrate. So far, they’ve done it better than anybody thought they might.

Russia’s Tagir Gadzhiev appears destined for bigger things after an impressive World Cup

With Scotland, it’s often all about attitude – and a team of psychologists would be at a loss to figure out what their attitude is going to be from one game to another. It’s easy to say, as they always do, that they’re a proud team but their maddening inconsistency makes you question that sometimes.

The non-performance against Ireland was wretched. Gregor Townsend said that he noticed that something wasn’t quite right with them in the warm-up. The warm-up! What does that suggest if not mental frailty under pressure? That’s one side of Scotland, but of course there is another.

The very next game here in Japan brought an impressive response to what happened in Yokohama. Townsend made changes and the changes worked.

Suddenly, the attitude was spot-on. Suddenly Scotland played with controlled aggression. They say they want to play the fastest rugby in the world, but this was a hybrid of what they want to be and what they should be. They managed to marry a bloody-minded belligerence up front with a creativity out the back. It was a balanced game plan and it was encouraging.

Hurricane Haggis, searching for Irn Bru & laughing off typhoons – Reid ready for Russia

Quiz: Test your knowledge of Russian rugby

Danny Wilson, the forward coach, said that the Samoa game is the benchmark now. He pointed out that, yes, they had to go through a hellish week post-Ireland to find the steel they needed – but now that they had it, they couldn’t dip below that level again. Ever.

We’ll see.

A defining time for Townsend

We’ve been getting excited about one-off performances for too long. The win against the Wallabies in Sydney, the near-miss against the All Blacks in Edinburgh, the Finn Russell-inspired victory against England, the annihilation of the Pumas in Argentina, the incredible comeback at Twickenham.

All great experiences, all examples of Scotland at their dashing best. But for every one of those days, there are one or two others that show them at their worst.

They’re now back at the crossroads in their story. Do they take another wrong turn and go round in circles all over again – or do they find the right answers and start making genuine progress?

Russia will be put away, eventually, but with only four days before Japan run out against them in the cauldron of Yokohama, you have to look at this as a week that will define Townsend’s time as Scotland coach.

With all due respect to the Six Nations, these upcoming games are the biggest the Scots have played in four years.

Over the past fortnight, we have heard players describe the challenge in a number of different ways but all of the terminology amounted to the same thing. “Do-or-die,” says one. “Sink-or-swim,” says another. “Now or never,” says a third. “All or nothing,” says a fourth.

If they can make the quarter-finals and take out the host nation, a seriously formidable rugby team, in the process then that will be an achievement worth saluting. That task started with Samoa and continues with Russia. Two games left and no safety net. The pressure is on.

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Ten out of ten: Rea extends perfect run with Argentina doubleARGWorldSBK

However tough the going gets, he always finds a way to get the job done. Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) claimed his fifth consecutive double of the 2018 MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship at the Circuito San Juan Villicum in sensational fashion. The champion was forced to dig deep to take the Argentinian double ahead of Xavi Fores (Barni Racing Team), but now holds another record to his name for the most consecutive wins in a World Superbike season, beating Colin Edwards and Neil Hodgson’s previous streak of nine victories.

The opening laps at the Circuito San Juan Villicum were amongst the most chaotic of the entire 2018 season. Fores was quick off the marks from pole, but his partners on the Race Two front row suffered much worse fates: Tom Sykes (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) immediately fell to the fringes of the top ten, while Eugene Laverty (Milwaukee Aprilia) crashed out unopposed in lap three whilst riding in second place.

It would be a big understatement to say that Rea’s race start went less smoothly than in Race One. A strong start pushed him up into the top five at the lights, but a succession of mistakes through the end of lap one and the first half of lap two saw him lose positions to Alex Lowes (Pata Yamaha Official WorldSBK Team) and Chaz Davies (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati), nearly falling one further under pressure from Marco Melandri (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati).

The Argentinian fans would not have to wait long for the comeback. Rea saw himself past Davies after the Welshman went in too hot at turn 1, then made good use of the back straight slipstream to edge smoothly past Lowes. A mistake from Razgatlioglu also left the Turkish rookie in the Northern Irishman’s wake. Meanwhile, a bruising battle for fourth saw Davies, Melandri and Lowes exchange places turn after turn.

At the four-lap mark, Fores had already opened a huge three-second gap taking advantage of Rea’s troubled start. This didn’t last: at a rate of nearly a second per lap, Rea caught up with the Spaniard and fought his way through to the front inside lap eight. Fores immediately pounced back at the back straight, but the Kawasaki’s pace was too much on the day and the weekend and, after moving back into the front half a lap later, Rea blasted into the lead and head-first into his tenth consecutive win, unchallenged from that point forwards.

A cool second for Fores means that he is now the official independent riders champion, thanks to his fifth podium of the year. Marco Melandri managed to return to the rostrum after a fantastic race-long duel with Davies, who finished fourth and again increases his gap with Michael van der Mark (Pata Yamaha Official WorldSBK Team) to 24 points, after the Dutchman ended Race Two in ninth.

Tom Sykes managed to climb back to fifth following a strong second half to his race, with Lowes in sixth and Razgatlioglu back in seventh, after fading in the late stages. An anticlimactic ending to the rookie’s Argentinian round, but he still manages to claim the best points haul of his WorldSBK career over a race weekend. Lorenzo Savadori (Milwaukee Aprilia) finished Race Two in eighth, whilst Jake Gagne (Red Bull Honda World Superbike Team) made it into the top ten for only the third time this season. Local hero Leandro Mercado managed to finish in twelfth, after crashing in Race One.

That’s a wrap from San Juan!

P1 – Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) “It’s been a tough day and night, I spent most of last night hugging the toilet, so a massive thanks to Alba, our Performance Manager and also the Clinica Mobile for sorting me out. At least I was able to keep fluids onboard during the race, but I don’t feel so good now though! I want to thank my team, they gave me a great bike this weekend and with a new track for everybody we hit the ground running and figured it out faster than most. Our bike was so good on the tyres at the end of the race and honestly I was just steering it round, so a massive thanks to them – this is dreamy, ten races on the bounce it’s really not normal! It’s mad and I just want to enjoy this moment and it’ll certainly make that long flight home worthwhile.”

P2 – Xavi Fores (BARNI Racing Team) “I missed the podium so today I was focyused on getting it again after Magny Cours. I started so strongly and was able to keep the pace, and I was pushing so hard but Jonny overtook me and then I kept my rhythm until the end. Really happy for this second place and also for the Independent Championship, and I want to say thanks to my team for the job this season. I’m looking forward to Qatar and I want to finish the season on the podium again.”

P3 – Marco Melandri (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) “Actually today I’m a bit disappointed because after three or four laps I made a mistake and went wide at Turn 7, and came back on behind Savadori. I then got past the two Yamahas and Chaz was pulling away, but I was pushing so hard to come back and after I saw Xavi but it was impossible to catch him. I’m sad because without the mistake I could’ve gone second and maybe tried to stay with Jonny, but anyway I’m happy for two podiums and one Superpole – so we’re looking good.”

#ARGWorldSBK at Circuito San Juan Villicum: Race 2 1. Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) 2. Xavi Fores (BARNI Racing Team) +3.273 3. Marco Melandri (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) +4.660

Championship Standings after Race 2, Round 12 1. Jonathan Rea (GBR) Kawasaki (520 points) 2. Chaz Davies (GBR) Ducati (348 points) 3. Michael van der Mark (NED) Yamaha (324 points)

World Superbike

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[apsbicepstraining]

Andy Murray too good for Juan Martin del Potro in fine French Open battle

Andy Murray had to excavate late to win the first two adjusts before running out a 7-6, 7-5, 6-0 win against Argentinas Juan Martn del Potro

Andy Murray experiences few ordeals more than proving people wrong and so the most tenacious gentleman in tennis goes into the second week of the French Open for the eighth time in 10 inspects with a echoing endorsement from the rival he trounced to get there, Juan Martn del Potro.

There were plenty of parties at the start of the week who horror the Scots form and fitness are currently in such a low ebb he had no chance of reaching the final for a second year in a row, and decreased prospects of going past the quarter-finals. He is not quite there yet, but he is in the fourth round again, and deservedly so after beating the occasionally inspired Argentinian by the misleading rating of 7-6( 10 -8 ), 7-5, 6-0 in precisely under 3 hour on a mild and agreeable afternoon on Court Philippe Chatrier , not long before the rainwater arrived.

Del Potro, becoming his first appearance here in five years old after the most wretched meter with hurt, said of their 10 th meeting, and exclusively the second to finish in straight organizes: It was another good battle. The first two starts[ took] two hours and a half, actually long sets.

Andy, hes very smart on courtroom. He has all the films, but also is great mentally. Thats why hes No1 in the world and I know how important this tournament is for him. I bid him all the best and, hopefully, he can go far.

A few players on the Tour would not annoyance with such compliments. But Del Potro is a man apart, encouraging sincere excitement in the crowd as he campaigned with tigerish intent to draw best available out of Murray. Del Potro should have won the first move but a scald forehand in the tie-break was out by so tiny a margin that the chair umpire conferred with the line judge before awarding the degree and set to Murray.

The second chassis was just as intense but Murray gradually got the upper hand over Del Potro, who was supposed to take drugs for a groin strain he picked up in his coincide against Nicols Almagro two days before. He did not exploit that as an excuse and told you he played sting free, but it was clear he was not moving as well as he might have wished.

Partly that was down to what he identified as Murrays court intelligence. There were so many artful exchanges between these two fabulou actors that it was difficult to picking when the win kill would arrive. Murray concentrated on impeding as numerous dances away from his resists lethal forehand as he could, then, having peppered him on the other side, employed the open court to tease him with drop shots.

Del Potro was just surprised by the strategy and, when not slicing backhand returns to keep the phase going, ran around those fires to unleash his forehand. He struck 16 clean winners with the fire, but only one in the final situate, which came and travelled in 28 hours. Fighting to the end, however, he made Murray save three break-dance items before completing the bagel.

Murray was in understandably good spirits although little has unsettled his feeling for some time, prevail or forget. The self-absorption of his youth is long gone, even if there is the odd on-court explosion still. He said after got a couple of such outbursts in his second pair, against Martin Klizan on Thursday, that he sometimes conflicts to contain those emotions.

Perhaps it is no bad situation, though. If he were to go totally against his true nature he might generate confusion that would further erode the commonwealth of his recreation leader. He had it on here, with simply a fleeting cus or admonishment for his container, where Ivan Lendl sat in his customary position of expressionless concentration.

By the standards of a year ago, when he propelled the most extraordinary assault on Novak Djokovics No 1 macrocosm grading around this time, he has under-performed. He arrived here having lost early in tournaments to excellent but lower-rated rivals in Dominic Thiem( Barcelona ), Albert Ramos Violas( Monte Carlo ), Borna Coric( Madrid ) and the dangerous and unpredictable Fabio Fognini( Rome ).

Del Potro seems dejected at the net after the notes that cost him the first situated. Image: Christophe Ena/ AP

But Murrays clay game is improving by the coincide. He agreed that this might have been his best 2017 testifying. I played some good parallels beginning of the year, he said, but emphatically, in the clay courtroom season, those second and third defines were the best I have played, for sure.

He might have paid scant attention to the pessimists, but his climate is hoisted. He is ready to raise his height another notch, as all the really good participates do when it matters. He expects to get better, because he has done it so many times before.

Last year here, he reached the final after coming close to suffer in his first two accords, each of which went to five primeds. This time, he took four locateds to overcome Andrey Kuznetsov and Klizan before affecting an foreboding trounce against Del Potro.

To be playing him this early on in the smash is not easy, but it can be a very positive happening, Murray said. You play person that good, perhaps youre a little more switched on. Your focus is maybe a little bit higher.

There was one moment of minor discomfort when he was asked why he was shushing himself.

He arced his eyebrows and responded, I dont know who you are I was doing it. Why does it stuff? Whats the big cheese? I dont get it. If I say something and you guys ask me what I was saying, if I say nothing, “youre asking me” why I dont say anything. What do you want me to do? What do you are willing to to say? Its irrelevant. Whats relevant is what happens during the points.

Hes not wrong.

Kyle Edmund falls short but glad with progress

The last-place experience two British participates drew it to the fourth round of the French Open, the Beatles were No1 in the charts and Harold Macmillan was serving out his closing months in ten Downing Street. Kyle Edmund, 22, might not have listened to From Me to You or know who Supermac was, but the 22 -year-old with the booming forehand would dearly have loved to equal that 1963 achievement alongside Andy Murray at this tournament.

For long elongates of his third-round equal against Kevin Anderson, Edmund looked like being part of a little bit of tennis history, but he found the resilience of the towering, strong South African too much after practically four hours of grinding tennis on the compact Court 2.

Anderson, seven situates behind Edmund in the world standings at 56, outlasted him to triumph 6-7( 6-8 ), 7-6( 7-4 ), 5-7, 6-1, 6-4 and book a neighbourhood in the last 16 against the former US Open champion Marin Cilic, who did short work of the Spaniard Feliciano Lpez, to triumph 6-1, 6-3, 6-3.

Edmund was simultaneously disappointed and satisfied, pointing out that another five-setter was a helpful part of his tennis education, especially as he hold back well physically. Now, he says, he is looking forward to Wimbledon, with preparation at Queens and Eastbourne defying the suggestion that it was a surface on which he did not detect comfortable.

I dont fairly remember me ever saying that I dont like grass, he said in his ultra-polite practice. I exactly experience playing on clay and hard much more. Well, I play on them a lot more. So I have more hour on them.

There was little in this match for nearly three hours, as they sold big cheese from behind or near the baseline. Each of them loaded up with full-force groundstrokes, averaging only three shots a rallying until near the end of the equal. As Edmund said after his quick-fire win over Renzo Olivo in the second round: Theres not much place having artilleries if you dont use them.

Jim Courier said after that performance that Edmund given the opportunity to be a top-1 0 player. Apart from a plunge during the fourth set on Saturday, he examined worthy of the assessment.

Anderson came to life down the extend to apply the pressure back on Britains No2, although shatters were hard to come by for each of them. Edmund harboured from love-4 0 for 3-3 in the fifth but had not been able sustain his stage all the way to the end.

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Andy Murray too good for Juan Martin del Potro in fine French Open battle

Andy Murray had to excavate late to win the first two adjusts before running out a 7-6, 7-5, 6-0 win against Argentinas Juan Martn del Potro

Andy Murray experiences few ordeals more than proving people wrong and so the most tenacious gentleman in tennis goes into the second week of the French Open for the eighth time in 10 inspects with a echoing endorsement from the rival he trounced to get there, Juan Martn del Potro.

There were plenty of parties at the start of the week who horror the Scots form and fitness are currently in such a low ebb he had no chance of reaching the final for a second year in a row, and decreased prospects of going past the quarter-finals. He is not quite there yet, but he is in the fourth round again, and deservedly so after beating the occasionally inspired Argentinian by the misleading rating of 7-6( 10 -8 ), 7-5, 6-0 in precisely under 3 hour on a mild and agreeable afternoon on Court Philippe Chatrier , not long before the rainwater arrived.

Del Potro, becoming his first appearance here in five years old after the most wretched meter with hurt, said of their 10 th meeting, and exclusively the second to finish in straight organizes: It was another good battle. The first two starts[ took] two hours and a half, actually long sets.

Andy, hes very smart on courtroom. He has all the films, but also is great mentally. Thats why hes No1 in the world and I know how important this tournament is for him. I bid him all the best and, hopefully, he can go far.

A few players on the Tour would not annoyance with such compliments. But Del Potro is a man apart, encouraging sincere excitement in the crowd as he campaigned with tigerish intent to draw best available out of Murray. Del Potro should have won the first move but a scald forehand in the tie-break was out by so tiny a margin that the chair umpire conferred with the line judge before awarding the degree and set to Murray.

The second chassis was just as intense but Murray gradually got the upper hand over Del Potro, who was supposed to take drugs for a groin strain he picked up in his coincide against Nicols Almagro two days before. He did not exploit that as an excuse and told you he played sting free, but it was clear he was not moving as well as he might have wished.

Partly that was down to what he identified as Murrays court intelligence. There were so many artful exchanges between these two fabulou actors that it was difficult to picking when the win kill would arrive. Murray concentrated on impeding as numerous dances away from his resists lethal forehand as he could, then, having peppered him on the other side, employed the open court to tease him with drop shots.

Del Potro was just surprised by the strategy and, when not slicing backhand returns to keep the phase going, ran around those fires to unleash his forehand. He struck 16 clean winners with the fire, but only one in the final situate, which came and travelled in 28 hours. Fighting to the end, however, he made Murray save three break-dance items before completing the bagel.

Murray was in understandably good spirits although little has unsettled his feeling for some time, prevail or forget. The self-absorption of his youth is long gone, even if there is the odd on-court explosion still. He said after got a couple of such outbursts in his second pair, against Martin Klizan on Thursday, that he sometimes conflicts to contain those emotions.

Perhaps it is no bad situation, though. If he were to go totally against his true nature he might generate confusion that would further erode the commonwealth of his recreation leader. He had it on here, with simply a fleeting cus or admonishment for his container, where Ivan Lendl sat in his customary position of expressionless concentration.

By the standards of a year ago, when he propelled the most extraordinary assault on Novak Djokovics No 1 macrocosm grading around this time, he has under-performed. He arrived here having lost early in tournaments to excellent but lower-rated rivals in Dominic Thiem( Barcelona ), Albert Ramos Violas( Monte Carlo ), Borna Coric( Madrid ) and the dangerous and unpredictable Fabio Fognini( Rome ).

Del Potro seems dejected at the net after the notes that cost him the first situated. Image: Christophe Ena/ AP

But Murrays clay game is improving by the coincide. He agreed that this might have been his best 2017 testifying. I played some good parallels beginning of the year, he said, but emphatically, in the clay courtroom season, those second and third defines were the best I have played, for sure.

He might have paid scant attention to the pessimists, but his climate is hoisted. He is ready to raise his height another notch, as all the really good participates do when it matters. He expects to get better, because he has done it so many times before.

Last year here, he reached the final after coming close to suffer in his first two accords, each of which went to five primeds. This time, he took four locateds to overcome Andrey Kuznetsov and Klizan before affecting an foreboding trounce against Del Potro.

To be playing him this early on in the smash is not easy, but it can be a very positive happening, Murray said. You play person that good, perhaps youre a little more switched on. Your focus is maybe a little bit higher.

There was one moment of minor discomfort when he was asked why he was shushing himself.

He arced his eyebrows and responded, I dont know who you are I was doing it. Why does it stuff? Whats the big cheese? I dont get it. If I say something and you guys ask me what I was saying, if I say nothing, “youre asking me” why I dont say anything. What do you want me to do? What do you are willing to to say? Its irrelevant. Whats relevant is what happens during the points.

Hes not wrong.

Kyle Edmund falls short but glad with progress

The last-place experience two British participates drew it to the fourth round of the French Open, the Beatles were No1 in the charts and Harold Macmillan was serving out his closing months in ten Downing Street. Kyle Edmund, 22, might not have listened to From Me to You or know who Supermac was, but the 22 -year-old with the booming forehand would dearly have loved to equal that 1963 achievement alongside Andy Murray at this tournament.

For long elongates of his third-round equal against Kevin Anderson, Edmund looked like being part of a little bit of tennis history, but he found the resilience of the towering, strong South African too much after practically four hours of grinding tennis on the compact Court 2.

Anderson, seven situates behind Edmund in the world standings at 56, outlasted him to triumph 6-7( 6-8 ), 7-6( 7-4 ), 5-7, 6-1, 6-4 and book a neighbourhood in the last 16 against the former US Open champion Marin Cilic, who did short work of the Spaniard Feliciano Lpez, to triumph 6-1, 6-3, 6-3.

Edmund was simultaneously disappointed and satisfied, pointing out that another five-setter was a helpful part of his tennis education, especially as he hold back well physically. Now, he says, he is looking forward to Wimbledon, with preparation at Queens and Eastbourne defying the suggestion that it was a surface on which he did not detect comfortable.

I dont fairly remember me ever saying that I dont like grass, he said in his ultra-polite practice. I exactly experience playing on clay and hard much more. Well, I play on them a lot more. So I have more hour on them.

There was little in this match for nearly three hours, as they sold big cheese from behind or near the baseline. Each of them loaded up with full-force groundstrokes, averaging only three shots a rallying until near the end of the equal. As Edmund said after his quick-fire win over Renzo Olivo in the second round: Theres not much place having artilleries if you dont use them.

Jim Courier said after that performance that Edmund given the opportunity to be a top-1 0 player. Apart from a plunge during the fourth set on Saturday, he examined worthy of the assessment.

Anderson came to life down the extend to apply the pressure back on Britains No2, although shatters were hard to come by for each of them. Edmund harboured from love-4 0 for 3-3 in the fifth but had not been able sustain his stage all the way to the end.

The post Andy Murray too good for Juan Martin del Potro in fine French Open battle appeared first on apsbicepstraining.com.

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