NBA RESULTS: San Antonio 103, Houston 91; Brooklyn 122, Orlando 115; Toronto 116, Charlotte 113; Memphis 106, Philadelphia 104

TUESDAY 19 JANUARY 2021

India eye fairytale Test win as Australia fret over paceman Mitchell StarcOne thing I know about Mitchell is he’s tough. He has played through some injuries before and got the job done so he’ll be hopefully good to go tomorrow.

Sport |09

IndfreOne throhope

Australia's Steve Smith

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YESTERDAY'S RESULTSGroup H

Republic of Korea 26-30 RHFSlovenia 29-25 Belarus

Group GNorth Macedonia 32 - 29 Chile

Group EFrance 25-24 Switzerland

Group FPortugal 26-19 Algeria

Group GSweden 24-23 Egypt

TODAY'S FIXTURESGroup A

Uruguay vs Cape Verde (8:00pm)

Germany vs Hungary (10:30pm)Group B

Spain vs Tunisia (8:00pm)Brazil vs Poland (10:30pm)

Group CJapan vs Angola (5:30pm)Qatar vs Croatia (8:00pm)

Group DBahrain vs D.R. Congo

(8:00pm)Denmark vs Argentina

(10:30pm)

THE PENINSULA – DOHA

Following confirmation that Auckland City FC will be unable to participate in the FIFA Club World Cup 2020, FIFA has adapted the competition’s match schedule.

FIFA, on Friday announced that Auckland City FC will miss the tournament in light of the COVID-19 pandemic and related quarantine measures required by the New Zealand authorities.

The competition format remains unchanged, with the opening match forfeited.

The tournament will now be staged at Education City and Ahmad Bin Ali stadiums, while Khalifa International Stadium, which was originally due to host two games, will not be used.

Ahmad Bin Ali Stadium will

stage the first match on February 4 at 5:00pm Qatar time, and the FIFA Club World Cup champions will be crowned at Education City Stadium on February 11 as the final kicks off at 9.00pm.

The tournament will be con-tested by home team Al Duhail SC who emerged victorious in last season's QNB Stars League, pow-erhouses Al Ahly SC, FC Bayern Munich, Ulsan Hyundai FC and Tigres UANL have joined the line-up for the tournament. The field will be completed by the winners of the CONMEBOL Lib-ertadores final, which is scheduled for January 30.

Following the withdrawal of Auckland City, the local team, Al Duhail SC, will move directly to the second round.

The draw to finalise the pairings will take place in Zurich today at 18:00 Doha time.

Education City and Ahmad Bin Ali Stadiums to stage FIFA event

FIFA Club World Cup 2020 to kick off on February 4

Visa Presale offers exclusivechance to purchase tickets

THE PENINSULA – DOHA

Visa cardholders in Qatar have the chance to purchase tickets during the exclusive Visa Presale for the FIFA Club World Cup Qatar 2020 presented by Alibaba Cloud.

Fans have an exclusive opportunity to secure match tickets on FIFA.com/tickets by using a Visa card until 12:00 AST / 10:00 CET on January 21.

Visa, the Official Payment Services Partner of FIFA, is the preferred payment method for fan ticket

purchases for the 2020 Club World Cup.

A range of affordable tickets are available on a first-come, first-served basis, with prices ranging from QR10 for a category 3 ticket for the first five matches up to QR300 for a category 1 ticket for the final.

COVID-19 measuresIn light of the COVID-19

pandemic, the host country will provide the required safeguards to protect the health and safety of all involved in the competition. Additional information on coronavirus safety measures for this event can be found on FIFA.com.

At this time, only residents with QIDs, Gulf Cooperation Council citizens and those with exceptional entry permits (EEPs) can enter the country, subject to State of Qatar visa and entry protocols.

Attendees will be required to present either a negative COVID-19 antigen test, a pos-itive COVID-19 antibodies test or record of a full vaccination.

At the stadiums and sur-rounding precincts, attendees must wear a mask, adhere to social distancing, undergo a temperature check on arrival

and show the status of their Ehteraz track and trace appli-cation. Clinics will be set up within each tournament venue to treat anyone who displays COVID-19 symptoms.

Six teamsThe tournament will see

the world’s top teams come together next month to compete for the most pres-tigious honour in global club football.

Last-minute salesA last-minute sales phase,

giving fans a final chance to purchase any remaining tickets, will take place fol-lowing the exclusive Visa Presale. Tickets will be available via FIFA.com/tickets.

More information on the FIFA Club World Cup 2020 is available on FIFA.com.

Voting process begins for QFA AwardsTHE PENINSULA – DOHA

The Board of Trustees of the Qatar Football Association (QFA) Award has announced the start of first phase of voting for the Best Awards for the 2020-21 season.

The opening phase of the voting process includes the first leg of QNB Stars League, where the Best Player and Best Under-23 Player are voted for.

Voting forms (55 question-naires and shortlists of the most prominent players in both categories during the league’s first leg) have been sent out to the participants in the voting process, namely: QNB Stars League team coaches, Qatar national team coach, Qatar Under-23 team coach, Team managers, Media representatives, Represent-ative of QFA, Representative of QSL and the President and members of the Board of Trustees of QFA Awards.

The Board will receive votes on or before January 21.

The voting for the Best Coach Award will take place after the end of QNB Stars League.

Qatar look to top group with win over CroatiaTHE PENINSULA – DOHA

Qatar coach Valero Rivera yesterday expressed his delight at the performances of his players ahead of their third and final Group match of the 27th IHF Men’s Handball World Championship - Egypt 2021.

Asian giants Qatar booked a place in the main round of the 32-team event and will take on European giants Croatia today.

Qatar started their Group campaign with a thrilling 30-25 win over Angola at Borg Al Arab Sports Hall, the designated venue for Group C matches.

On Sunday, Qatar clinched a thrilling 31-29 victory over Japan, who stunned two-time Olympic champions and former World Champions Croatia with a 29-29 draw in their opening match.

“We provided a great level despite the big number of absences in our ranks. We suffered a little from the numerical shortage we had to go through,” Rivera said after Qatar raised their points tally to 4.

The Spanish coach added: “I am happy to win two out of two matches and now our focus is on Croatia at the end of the preliminary round.”

Former champions Croatia are in need

of full points to confirm a berth in the main round, as they are currently placed second in Group C, two points ahead of Japan who face Angola today.

For Qatar, it will be a battle to prove who's best in Group C.

“We did not change our plans after watching Japan’s surprise against Croatia, but we focused on our strengths and our return to action was wonderful,” Rivera commented yesterday.

Qatari player Amin Zakar said that facing strong Croatia will be difficult, but Al Annabi will seek to continue their good

performances in the World Championship, having already made it to the next stage.

“Despite the absence of many players, we managed to qualify for the second round. We won over Angola in the first round and then we won over the strong Japanese national team. I consider this victory to be the natural result of the effort exerted by the team, especially with the absence of a large number of important players,” Zakar said, adding that his team will seek to overcome the challenge poised by the former champions today.

Meanwhile, Croatian player Luka

Sebitic yesterday admitted that facing Qatar 'will not be easy', but his team will hope for a successful outcome.

The match will kick off at 8:00pm Qatar time.

Yesterday, France, Portugal and Sweden marched into the main round with perfect records in their respective groups.

North Macedonia, Russian Handball Federation, Slovenia and hosts Egypt also made it to the next stage.

Meanwhile, Cape Verde have officially informed the IHF that they withdraw from the World Championship following chal-lenges which already led to the cancel-lation of their match against Germany on Sunday.

The IHF have accepted their with-drawal, which safeguards the health of all stakeholders involved in the World Championship.

The competition rules state that each team needs to have a minimum of 10 players including one goalkeeper, which the team failed to abide to.

Their matches will be counted as 10:0 forfeit victories for their opponents in the last preliminary round game and the Pres-ident’s Cup, with the opponents claiming two points.

Qatar players celebrate after defeating Japan on Sunday.

Neville leaves England job to take up Inter Miami roleREUTERS – LONDON

Phil Neville stepped down as England women’s team manager yesterday and the former Manchester United and England defender was named the head coach of David Beck-ham’s Major League Soccer (MLS) side Inter Miami.

Neville, 43, had been in talks with the MLS men’s side, who have a vacancy since sacking manager Diego Alonso this month.

“This is a very young club with a lot of promise and upside, and I am committed to challenging myself, my players and everyone around me to grow and build a competitive soccer culture we can all be proud of,” Neville said in a statement.

Ahmad Bin Ali Stadium

Education City Stadium

11TUESDAY 19 JANUARY 2021 SPORT

QSL: Al Rayyan look to rise in standings FAWAD HUSSAIN THE PENINSULA

Al Rayyan have shown gradual improvement since Frenchman Laurent Blanc took over as team’s head coach almost a month ago. But the ‘Lions’ still have a lot to do to be among the top sides in the ongoing QNB Stars League (QSL) season.

Al Sadd, the only unbeaten side this season, are on top with 38 points followed by Al Duhail (27 points), Al Gharafa (24) and Qatar SC (23 points).

Al Rayyan – the last edi-tion’s runners-up – after their win over Qatar SC last weak jumped to fifth spot on basis of a better goal difference over Al Ahli, with 22 points. Their first target is to secure a top three spot before challenging an immaculate Xavi Hernandez-coached Al Sadd.

Today, Al Rayyan will face Al Wakrah and they can leapfrog to third spot with a win, if results of other matches also go in their favour.

Blanc said his team was well prepared for the clash at the Qatar SC Stadium.

“Our preparations have gone well for our clash against Al Wakrah. We are working well as a squad. The players are working a lot to reach discipline

and find the required harmony among themselves,” Blanc said yesterday at a pre-match press conference.

“We are up to speed with

our new training tactics, but there are some players who are not ready and we need to equip all players through rigorous training and matches we play."

Al Wakrah, coached by Marquez Lopez, are 10th in the table and need some surprising results to improve their

standings. They put up a good show last week, holding Umm Salal to a goalless draw.

“We are ready to take on Al Rayyan. Our preparation was not much different from how we usually prepare for our matches in the league. The team showed a good level in the last match (against Umm Salal), which contributed to clearing the minds of the players after the big loss to Al Duhail in the previous week,” Lopez said yesterday.

Al Duhail look to bounce back from Al Sadd defeat

Meanwhile, reigning cham-pions Al Duhail are hoping to bounce back from a 1-3 defeat to Al Sadd as they meet Qatar SC in today’s other match.

“We will be playing our next match against Qatar SC with an aim of collecting three points. We have to be the attacking side during this match because the Qatar SC team is good at moving from defence to attack at high speed. We have to stay focused because if we lose focus, we may have to pay a heavy price,” Al Duhail coach Sabri Lamouchi said yesterday.

“We will look for a victory to compensate for the loss against Al Sadd last week. We

know that a difficult match awaits us against Qatar

SC. They have high

potential and will play against us strongly in order to compensate for their loss against Al Rayyan. Therefore, we have to be fully focused on

the field to achieve the desired result,” he added.

Qatar SC, who also lost their last match to Al Rayyan, are looking to make a winning comeback.

“It will be an exciting match against the defending cham-pions considering we both lost our matches in the last round. We have played a series of strong matches in a short period of time, where we played six games within a month, but we are now in a good condition. We have an opportunity to get ready for the next match with the highest degree of concen-tration,” said Qatar SC coach Younes Ali.

Today’s other match will see Al Arabi clashing with Umm S a l a l at Al Duhail

Stadium.

A file photo of Al Rayyan’s training session.

Al Duhail players prepare for Qatar SC clash.

QNB STARS LEAGUE STANDINGS AFTER 14 ROUNDSRk Club M W L D GF GA GD P

1 Al Sadd 14 12 0 2 53 10 43 38

2 Al Duhail 14 9 5 0 36 20 16 27

3 Al Gharafa 14 7 4 3 29 21 8 24

4 Qatar SC 14 7 5 2 24 15 9 23

5 Al Rayyan 14 6 4 4 16 13 3 22

6 Al Ahli 14 7 6 1 20 25 -5 22

7 Al Arabi 14 5 5 4 18 21 -3 19

8 Al Sailiya 14 5 6 3 17 27 -10 18

9 Umm Salal 14 3 6 5 8 16 -8 14

10 Al Wakrah 14 4 8 2 13 24 -11 14

11 Al Khor 14 2 8 4 10 26 -16 10

12 Al Kharaitiyat 14 2 12 0 9 35 -26 6

by the

singheir

SC in today’s other match. “We will be playing our next

match against Qatar SC with an aim of collecting three points.We have to be the attacking side during this match because the Qatar SC team is good at movingfrom defence to attack at high speed. We have to stay focused because if we lose focus, we may have to pay a heavy price,”Al Duhail coach Sabri Lamouchi said yesterday.

“We will look for a victory to compensate for the loss against Al Sadd last week. We

know that a difficult match awaits us against Qatar

SC. They have high

potential and will play against us strongly in order to compensate for their loss against Al Rayyan. Therefore, we have to be fully focused on

Al Arabi clashing with UmmS a l a l at Al Duhail

Stadium.ROUND 15 FIXTURES TODAY

4:30: Al Wakrah vs Al Rayyan at Qatar SC Stadium

7:00pm: Qatar SC vs Al Duhail at Qatar SC Stadium

7:00pm: Umm Salal vs Al Arabi at Al Duhail Stadium

TOMORROW 4:30pm: Al Kharaitiyat vs Al

Gharafa at Al Ahli Stadium 7:00pm: Al Sailiya vs Al Ahli

at Al Ahli Stadium 7:00pm: Al Sadd vs Al Khor at

Al Sadd Stadium

Blanc says team ready to take on Al Wakrah; Al Duhail eye turnaround

QWSC set to launch Fitness Challenge ChampionshipTHE PENINSULA — DOHA

Qatar Women’s Sports Committee (QWSC), in cooper-ation with “Strong Box Func-tional Fitness Center”, will organise the “CrossFit” Women’s Fitness Challenge for 2021 later this month. The event will take place on January 23, from 8:00 am– 3:00 pm, on the outdoor fields of play of Qatar Women’s sports

committee The first tour-nament of its kind in Qatar will witness the participation of 40 – 50 teams consisting of two female players in each team, bringing the total number to 80 – 100. 15 judges from the team games specialist will oversee the tournament.

At the end of the tour-nament, medals and cash prizes will be distributed to the top

three winners, in addition to in-kind prizes.

For her part, Lolwa Hussein Al-Marri, President of the Qatar Women’s Sports Committee, said that the championship is the first of its kind organised by the committee, and aims to develop the skills of the partic-ipants, enhance their strength and fitness, encourage positive sports practices and spread sports awareness in society.

She added that the champi-onship represents a new addition to the tournaments organised by the “Women’s Sports Committee”, which in turn is always concerned with sponsoring the participants and keenness to discover new talents in various sports, which helps to highlight the commit-tee’s support and encourage the practice of sport to be the life-style of every player.

ECGC, CBQ host Qatar Masters Pro-Am QualifierTHE PENINSULA — DOHA Commercial Bank, Qatar’s first private bank, and Education City Golf Club held the Commercial Bank Qatar MastersPro-Am Qualifier last weekend.

This competition is the first to be held this year, and more Pro-Am Qualifier competitions will follow on February 6, 12, and 19, as the official

Commercial Bank Qatar Masters Pro-Am champi-onship will be held on March 10, 2021.

Michael Braidwood, General Manager at Education City Golf Club, said: “Through this competition, we aim to provide the golfing community a unique opportunity to play in a national golf tournament with the ultimate goal of p l a y i n g a l o n g s i d e

professionals and interna-tional golf players.”

Top three standing players will get qualified to play in the Commercial Bank Qatar Masters Pro-Am, and each won two free entries to the VIP chalet at the Commercial Bank Qatar Masters 2021.

Commenting on the matter, Hussein Al Abdulla, Chief Marketing Officer at Commercial Bank stated:

“Playing in Commercial Bank Pro-Am tournament with leading professional golfers is a dream for many golf enthusiasts. As we are always looking at ways to provide more playing opportunities for our customers and general public, the intro-duction of this new pro-am competition is another example of how we are ful-filling that pledge.”

This competition is the first to be held this year, and more Pro-Am Qualifier competitions will follow on February 6, 12, and 19, as the official Commercial Bank Qatar Masters Pro-Am championship will be held on March 10, 2021.

A view of Education City Golf Club.

Davis Cup Finals to take place over 11 days, three cities

REUTERS — LONDON

The 2021 Davis Cup Finals will be held over 11 days rather than seven and will almost certainly be staged across three cities, the International Tennis Feder-ation (ITF) confirmed yesterday.

The changes proposed by the ITF’s event partner Kosmos Tennis, the Spanish-based investment firm who are pumping in $3bn over 25 years, were agreed by the ITF Board.

This year’s event is scheduled for Nov 25-Dec 5.

The ITF confirmed that two more European cities are being sought to share the staging of the 2021 Finals with Madrid which hosted the first edition of the revamped competition in 2019. Another change is to have the Finals trimmed from 18 to 16 teams from 2022.

“We want to make it better for the players, better for the fans and better for the teams,” Kris Dent, ITF Senior Executive Director, Professional Tennis, said.

“People love the idea of the best teams in the world coming together for one event, but seven days, especially the day after the ATP Finals, it’s just not possible so these changes we think will make a great com-petition even greater.”

The 121-year-old men’s team event underwent a major revamp in 2019 with the season-long home and away tie format replaced by a soccer World Cup-type format with the top 18 nations battling for

the title at Madrid’s Caja Magica in November. While there was praise for the new event which ended with Rafa Nadal leading Spain to victory over Canada in the final, the logistics of playing 25 ties, each consisting of two singles and a doubles, on three courts in seven days was challenging. One tie between the United States and Italy ended at 4am, local time.

“We believe we did a great event in 2019 but for sure there were things to improve, like the scheduling and the attendances in the stands,” Davis Cup Finals Tournament Director Albert Costa said.

“With the new format and the new project we have now I believe we will solve all those problems. Eleven days is better for the players because you can’t play five ties in seven days.”

A 10-week bidding process opened yesterday for European cities keen to join Madrid in hosting the 2021 Finals.

Turin, the new host of the ATP Finals, would be a logical option while London is another potential co-host.

The two additional cities would each host two group stages and one quarter-final each, with Madrid hosting two group stages, two quarter-finals, the semi-finals and the final.

"Players we have spoken to over the last few days alone have shown real excitement at being able to add another couple of cities, making it even more a World Cup of tennis," Dent said.

Laurent Blanc

10 TUESDAY 19 JANUARY 2021SPORT

Messi sees red as Bilbao shock Barca to claim Super Cup gloryREUTERS – SEVILLE

Lionel Messi was sent off for the first time in his Barcelona career in the closing stages of extra time as they lost 3-2 to Athletic Bilbao in the Spanish Super Cup on Sunday.

Messi, who returned to the starting lineup after missing the semi-final victory over Real Sociedad through injury, was dismissed after striking Asier Villalibre in the final minute.

The Argentine had been heavily involved in a more

positive way as Barca took the lead five minutes before the break.

Messi’s goalbound effort was blocked, falling to the feet of Antoine Griezmann, who netted the first of his two goals.

Bilbao’s responded as Oscar De Marcos met Inaki Williams’ cross two minutes later to send the sides in level at halftime.

Raul Garcia’s header was disallowed for offside by VAR after the restart as Bilbao had the better chances in a tense

affair. However, French forward Griezmann looked to have won it for the Catalans with a goal against the run of play 14 minutes from time, only for substitute Villalibre to volley home in the 90th minute to send the game into the extra period.

Three minutes into the additional half hour Wil-liams curled a stunning effort into the far corner from the edge of the box to give Bilbao the lead for the first time in the tie.

“What a goal it was!,” said

beaming Bilbao coach Marcelino.

“It was a great piece of skill and you couldn’t produce a better finish.

“In general I don’t think Barca deserved to take the lead, especially in the first half, anyway.

“The lads were so focused on this game and I’m so proud of them. They make your job easy and enjoyable.”

Marcelino was only named as coach this month after Gaizka Garitano was dis-missed, and the 55-year-old

has now beaten Barca in the last two finals they have reached after his success over them with Valencia in the 2019 Copa del Rey final.

“It’s going to be impossible to keep up that record,” he said. “I don’t know how many semi-finals I had to play before actually reaching a final, I think it was eight, but now I’ve won in two finals.” A third Super Cup title is Bilbao’s first silverware since they claimed the same trophy in 2015 with a 5-1 aggregate win over Barcelona.

Athletic’s band of brothers trumps Barca stardustREUTERS – SEVILLE

Athletic Bilbao’s indomitable desire and spirit, forged from the club’s fierce local identity, overpowered a Barcelona side containing world class players but lacking cohesion to win the Spanish Super Cup on Sunday.

Led by their bearded forward Asier Villalibre, who played the trumpet on the pitch after the 3-2 extra-time win, Ath-letic’s full-blooded celebrations showed the team’s sense of unity, something Barca have been missing for a while.

Barca forward Antoine Griezmann blamed the team’s defeat on a lack of communication in defence.

“We didn’t defend well, we didn’t talk to each other. When the ball goes out someone needs to shout out instructions,” he said.

Griezmann, who spent his formative years at Athletic’s local rivals Real Sociedad, praised his opponents’ fighting spirit after they which twice came from behind to cancel out his goals.

“They pressed us very well, they gave everything until the last minute,” he added.

Athletic coach Marcelino, who was taking charge of only his third game since succeeding Gaizka Garitano, was also in awe of his new side.

“It’s incredible how these players work and fight. They were so determined to win this game and we’re very proud of them,” he said.

While Barca’s team contained eight nationalities from three continents, Ath-letic’s players all hail from Spain’s Basque region and neighbouring Navarre, a talent pool of little more than three million people.

The majority of their players, including goalscorers Oscar de Marcos, Villalibre and Inaki Williams, came through the club’s academy, rather like the great, all-conquering Barca side coached by Pep Guardiola between 2008 and 2012.

Lionel Messi is one of the few remaining players from that squad but the Argentine was sent off for striking out at Villalibre and conceded last month he has struggled to warm to the current Barca side.

The Athletic squad, however, are so close that six players, including trumpet player Villalibre, decided to form a band during last year’s lockdown, covering hit songs from the Basque region.

“Everything can be summed up by heart and faith,” said Athletic striker Wil-liams, whose scorching strike early in extra time won the match.

Athletic Bilbao’s Iker Muniain and team-mates celebrate with the

trophy.

Juventus title run at risk following 2-0 loss at InterAP – MILAN

Juventus’ nine-year stranglehold on the Serie A title was at risk of unraveling after a 2-0 loss at Inter Milan on Sunday.

Nicolò Barella scored one goal and set up another for former Juventus midfielder Arturo Vidal as Inter moved level on points with city rival AC Milan atop the table.

Juventus, which has won the Italian league every season since 2011-12, was left in fifth place and seven points behind the leaders.

In the first matchup between Inter coach Antonio Conte and Juventus counterpart Andrea Pirlo - who played for Conte at Juventus and is coaching for the first time this season at any level - it was the veteran Conte who took home the bragging rights.

Juventus created few chances and never really threatened to get back into the match.

“Our ambitions are unchanged,” Pirlo said. “It’s a misstep against a strong opponent. These things happen. But what I’m disappointed by is the attitude. A side like Juventus must come here with a certain confidence and ambition, the desire to take the initiative and steer the game in a certain direction. But we were too timid.”

Inter took control early on when Vidal leapt over Danilo to head in a cross from Barella.

Having returned to Serie A at the start of this season, it was Vidal’s first goal in the Italian league since his last score for Juventus in 2015.

Inter’s second exposed problems in Juventus’ defense, as Barella ran onto a long through ball from Alessandro Bastoni and sprinted past Gianluca Frabotta and Giorgio Chiellini to finish off a counterattack.

The last time Inter beat Juve without conceding was in April, 2010 - shortly before the Nerazzurri secured their last Serie A title.

“It was important for me and for the squad,” Vidal said. “It was a tough game against the strongest team in Italy. Today we showed that we can fight for the title. It gives us confidence and belief that we can go all the way.”

Key Juventus defender Matthijs de Ligt missed the match with the coronavirus, as did Juan Cuadrado and Alex Sandro.

Juventus doesn’t have much time to regather itself, as it faces Napoli in the Italian Super Cup on Wednesday.

Lorenzo Insigne scored two and set up another as a stunning first-half performance saw Napoli blow Fiorentina away, winning 6-0 to move into the top four.

Napoli moved third, six points behind the leaders.Gennaro Gattuso’s team got off to a brilliant start

as Insigne scored in the fifth minute.Fiorentina had chances and hit the crossbar but

Napoli was clinical with its opportunities.Diego Demme doubled Napoli’s lead in the 36th

following a classic counterattack and Insigne set up Hirving Lozano for the third two minutes later. The match was all but over when Piotr Zieliński added another on the stroke of halftime.

Insigne doubled his tally with a second-half penalty after Tiémoué Bakayoko was tripped by Fiorentina midfielder Gaetano Castrovilli.

Substitute Matteo Politano capped a dominating Napoli performance in the final minute.

Inter Milan’s Arturo Vidal scoring their first goal against Juventus.

Global transfer activity drops for first time in a decade: FIFAREUTERS – MANCHESTER

The amount spent on player transfers in international football fell by 23.4% last year as the impact of the COVID pandemic was felt across the game.

Figures released by FIFA on Monday showed that the total spend across the global game was $5.63bn down from $7.35bn in 2019.

The total was the lowest amount spent on players since 2016 when $4.6bn exchanged hands over deals.

The bulk of transfer spend comes from European clubs and most faced a stoppage play after lockdown restrictions were brought in from March.

English clubs topped the spending charts with $1.627bn invested, Italy was second on $731.5m with Spain, Germany and France next.

The biggest spending non-European nations were Brazil and the United States.

The top spending club in Europe in 2020 was Chelsea, followed by Man-chester United, Manchester City, Bar-celona and Juventus.

Spain was top of the chart for revenue generated from transfers ($785.7m).

The number of overall deals globally, including loans and free transfers, also fell, for the first time in a decade.

A total 17,077 deals took place during 2020, down from 18,047 in 2019, although the figure was still higher than in 2016.

The number of big money deals is a small part of the overall market -- in terms of international transfers with transfer fees the majority (55.7%) involved fees of less than $500,000.

Those with fees above $5m repre-sented around 10% of those with transfer fees or 1.3% of the total transfers.

While spending on players in women’s soccer remains a tiny fraction of in the men’s game, the FIFA figures showed that growth in activity continued despite the pandemic.

Boca beat Banfield in shootout to win inaugural Maradona CupREUTERS – BUENOS AIRES

Boca Juniors won Argentina’s inaugural Diego Armando Maradona Cup 5-3 in a shootout on Sunday after Banfield had scored deep in stoppage time to level the match at 1-1.

The tournament, which was renamed to honour the Argentine great after he passed away in November, kicked off in October as football returned following a seven-month hiatus due to the novel coro-navirus pandemic.

A rock band comprising

former professional footballers played live on the pitch before kick off and the stadium was lit up with fireworks and a light show featuring images and quotes from the charismatic former Boca Juniors striker.

“This cup is a tribute to Diego, and he’ll surely be accompanying our celebra-tions,” Boca’s Ramon Abila said after the game.

After a tepid first 45 minutes at the San Juan del Bicentenario stadium, Boca took the lead with a spec-tacular strike from Edwin Carmona 19 minutes into the

second half. However, Luciano Lollo equalised in the sixth minute of stoppage time for Banfield, just moments after Boca had Emmanuel Mas sent off.

Boca, who last recorded a victory on Dec. 27, converted all five of their spot kicks while Jorge Rodriguez missed for Banfield.

Boca’s Cup win came after a disappointing midweek defeat to Santos saw them knocked out of the Copa Lib-ertadores, the South American equivalent of the Champions League, at the semi-final stage.

Boca Juniors’ Carlos Tevez and team-mates celebrate with the trophy after winning the inaugural Copa Diego Maradona title.

09TUESDAY 19 JANUARY 2021 SPORT

India eye fairytale win as Australia fret over StarcREUTERS — BRISBANE

Injury-ravaged India will chase 324 runs for a fairytale victory in the fourth Test decider against Australia as an epic series that has ebbed and flowed draws to a fitting climax on the final day at the Gabba.

At the end of a rain-hit day four, India’s batsmen pondered a wicket laden with ominous cracks while Australia fretted over the fitness of pace spearhead Mitchell Starc and hoped the weather would behave on day five.

Australia may also wonder whether they waited too long to unleash their bowlers, with rain bringing an end to yester-day’s play after only 1.5 overs of India’s second innings after tea.

India, after bowling Aus-tralia out for 294, were four for no loss, with Rohit Sharma four not out and fellow opener Shubman Gill yet to score.

Australia have a maximum of 98.1 overs to beat India and seal the series 2-1, but it was only a week ago that the home side failed to knock over Ajinkya Rahane’s battered team in 131 overs in the drawn Sydney Test.

The hosts must win the match to reclaim the Border-Gavaskar trophy, while holders India need only a draw to retain it two years after their break-through 2-1 win in the 2018/19 series in Australia.

Compounding the chal-lenge, Australia’s attack may also be undermanned, with left-armer Starc seen clutching his hamstring.

“One thing I know about Mitchell is he’s tough,” Australia batsman Steve Smith told reporters.

“He has played through some injuries before and got the

job done so he’ll be hopefully good to go tomorrow.

“The wicket is certainly dif-ferent to what it is in Sydney. There’s a bit more happening here. We saw a few balls shoot up today, a couple kept a bit low, a couple went off cracks which is always playing on the batters’ mind.”

The highest successful chase in a Gabba Test was in 1951 when Australia finished 236 for seven, but there have been big scores in recent years.

Pakistan racked up 450 in the fourth innings at the Gabba in a lost cause in 2016.

That India remain in the hunt is an achievement in itself, with not a single first-choice bowler in the team due to a hor-rendous injury toll.

In a series that has pro-duced a string of unlikely Indian heroes, Mohammed Siraj, the de facto pace leader in only his third Test, finished with an innings haul of 5-73 yesterday, taking the wind out of Aus-tralia’s sails as they tried to

quicken their scoring. He had some assistance from the pitch, with balls rearing out of cracks and others staying low.

“We saw some cracks today and it will play on the batsmen’s minds. It won’t be easy tomorrow but our batsmen will be prepared,” he told reporters.

Smith was one of Siraj’s victims, out for 55 when he gloved a catch to Rahane after a ball pinged steeply off the wicket.

In his second Test, Shardul Thakur grabbed 4-61 in the innings, snaring opener Marcus Harris (38) and tearing into the tail with the wickets of all-rounder Cameron Green (37) and wicketkeeper-captain Tim Paine (27).

Australia’s tail showed cus-tomary resistance, with Pat Cummins (28 not out), Nathan Lyon (13) and Josh Hazlewood (9) boosting the victory target to ensure India will have to fight tooth and nail to deliver the fairytale finish.

Indian players celebrate after getting the wicket of Cameron Green of Australia during day four of the fourth Test at the Gabba in Brisbane, yesterday.

AUSTRALIA, 1st innings 369 (M. Labuschagne

108, T. Paine 50; T. Natarajan 3-78, W. Sundar

3-89)

INDIA, 1st innings 336 (S. Thakur 67, W. Sundar

62; J. Hazlewood 5-57)

AUSTRALIA, 2nd innings (overnight 21-0)

M. Harris c Pant b Thakur .......................................38

D. Warner lbw Sundar ...........................................48

M. Labuschagne c Sharma b Siraj .........................25

S. Smith c Rahane b Siraj .......................................55

M. Wade c Pant b Siraj ............................................ 0

C. Green c Sharma b Thakur ..................................37

T. Paine c Pant b Thakur .........................................27

P. Cummins not out .............................................. 28

M. Starc c Saini b Siraj ................................................1

N. Lyon c Agarwal b Thakur .................................. 13

J. Hazlewood c Thakur b Siraj ..................................9

Extras (b5, lb2, nb4, w2) ..................................... 13

Total (all out, 75.5 overs) ..................... 294Fall of wickets: 1-89 (Harris), 2-91 (Warner),

3-123 (Labuschagne), 4-123 (Wade), 5-196 (Smith),

6-227 (Green), 7-242 (Paine), 8-247 (Starc), 9-274

(Lyon), 10-294 (Hazlewood)

Bowling: Siraj 19.5-5-73-5 (1w), Natarajan 14-4-

41-0 (2nb), Sundar 18-1-80-1, Thakur 19-2-61-4

(1w, 1nb), Saini 5-1-32-0 (1nb)

INDIA, 2nd innings (Target 328)

Rohit Sharma not out ...............................................4

Shubman Gill not out ..............................................0

Total (1.5 Ov, RR: 2.18, no wickets) ...........4 Yet to bat: C Pujara, A Rahane, M Agarwal, R Pant,

W Sundar, S Thakur, N Saini, M Siraj, T Natarajan

Bowling: M Starc 1-0-4-0-0, J Hazlewood 0.5-0-

0-0

SCOREBOARD

Emotional Siraj illustrates India’s resilience with maiden five-wicket haul

Mohammed Siraj of India celebrates the wicket of Marnus Labuschagne of Australia, yesterday.

Relaxed South Africa happy with security arrangements for Pakistan Test seriesREUTERS — KARACHI

Quinton de Kock has lauded the security arrange-ments laid out for South Africa on their first tour of Pakistan in 14 years and says the players are “a lot calmer” about the tour now they have arrived in the country and seen the measures first-hand.

South Africa will play two Tests and three Twenty20 Internationals on their return to Pakistan for the first time since 2007.

“When we were coming here, it was the biggest concern, but when we landed and saw the amount of security, we became a lot calmer. Over the days it has become less of a worry and we have been focussed more on the cricket,” the South African captain told reporters yesterday.

“The measures they (the Pakistan government) have taken have allowed us to feel comfortable and just focus on preparing for the Test series.

“Every corner is checked and all bases are covered. We feel safe and for now are just wor-rying about cricket.”

South Africa are confined to their hotel rooms outside of practice sessions, and De Kock has become the latest international player to question the sustainability of bio-secure environments amid the coronavirus pandemic due to the strain on the mental health of players.

The first Test in Karachi starts on January 26 and is followed by the second in Rawalpindi from February 4.

England win first Test against Sri LankaREUTERS — GALLE

England won the first Test against Sri Lanka by seven wickets at Galle International Stadium yesterday as Jonny Bairstow and debutant Dan Lawrence knocked off the 36 runs required on the last day.

Bairstow was 35 not out and Lawrence unbeaten on 21 in a 62-run partnership as England reached 76 for three in their second innings to take a 1-0 lead in the two-Test series.

They had been set a target of 74 after bowling Sri Lanka out for 359 but lost three wickets and were reeling at 14-3 before Bairstow and Lawrence took them to 38-3 when bad light stopped play on Sunday.

“It was a tricky wicket to bat on and you had to play as much off your back foot,” said Bairstow after England had been subjected to a torrent of sharp spin from Laisth Embuldeniya, Dilruwan Perera and Wanindu Hasaranga.

“It’s absolutely fabulous, winning Tests is always what you want to do it. It’s difficult playing in the subcontinent, you know the challenges but to get win on board is pleasing for all the boys.”

Sri Lanka could have claimed

the wicket of Lawrence in the third over of the morning but failed to review after Perera rapped him on the pads. Hawk-eye replays showed it would have hit the wicket.

It took 9.2 overs for England to complete the victory and will now be looking for a sixth successive Test win in Sri Lanka in the second Test, which is also being played at Galle and starts on Friday.

England had set themselves up for the win on the opening day when Sri Lanka turned in a woeful batting performance and were bowled out for 135.

England captain Joe Root then hit 228 runs as England scored 421 for a significant first innings lead.

Sri Lanka’s batsmen applied themselves much better in their second innings and overhauled the

deficit but five wickets for Jack Leach meant they were unable to set a more competitive target for England.

“We were outplayed in the first innings by both bat and bowl and that is what cost us the game,” said Sri Lanka skipper Dinesh Chandimal.

Jonny Bairstow (right) and debutant Dan Lawrence leave after sealing the win.

SRI LANKA, 1st innings 135 (D. Chandimal 28;

D. Bess 5-30, S. Broad 3-20)

ENGLAND, 1st innings 421 (J. Root 228; J.

Bairstow 47)

SRI LANKA, 2nd innings (overnight 158-2)

ENGLAND, 2nd innings (Target 74)Z. Crawley c Mendis b Embuldeniya .......................8

D. Sibley b Embuldeniya ..........................................2

J. Bairstow not out ...................................................35

J. Root run out (Dickwella).........................................1

D. Lawrence not out .................................................21

Extras (lb 9) ............................................................... 9

Total (24.2 Ov, RR: 3.12) ........................ 76 Did not bat: Jos Buttler , Sam Curran, Dom Bess,

Jack Leach, Mark Wood, Stuart Broad

Fall of wickets: 1-3 (Dom Sibley, 0.6 ov), 2-12

(Zak Crawley, 4.6 ov), 3-14 (Joe Root, 5.6 ov)

Bowling: L Embuldeniya 12-3-29-2, D Perera

11.2-2-34-0, PWH de Silva 1-0-4-0

SCOREBOARD

South Africa head coach during team's training camp in Karachi.

Sri Lanka skipper rues woeful batting in GalleREUTERS — GALLE

Sri Lanka stand-in captain Dinesh Chandimal (pictured) admitted a woeful batting performance in the first innings cost his team the first Test against England at Galle Inter-national Stadium.

England won the Test by seven wickets on the last day yesterday to record a fifth successive Test victory in Sri Lanka.

The home team won the toss and were looking to put a large total on the board but their batsmen con-trived to give away their wickets in an opening day performance that drew widespread derision from an

array of cricketing personalities. A paltry total of 135 allowed England to establish a significant first innings lead as they scored 421 with captain Joe Root contributing 228.

“We were out-played in the first innings with both the bat and ball and that cost us the game,” s a i d

Chandimal, who stepped in to lead the team after Dimuth Karunaratne was ruled out with a broken finger.

“If you are playing at Galle, you have to get a big total in the first innings but we didn’t and that is what has cost us. The first innings total is crucial when you are playing on this kind of track.”

Galle traditionally offers runs early but the wicket deteriorates quickly to allow spinners a chance

to get among the batsmen.“We had just come

from South Africa and I felt our batting unit thought they were playing out there. We

have to learn from those mistakes,” he added.

Chandimal was pleased, however, with the stoic per-formance in the second innings as Sri Lanka scored 359 and, at times, threatened to set England an even bigger target than the 74 runs needed to win the first of the two Test series.

“There were some outstanding knocks in the second innings and if we’d got another 70-80 runs, this could have been a different story. We must take the positives out of this and look forward to the next one.” The second Test, also in Galle starts on Friday.

ry total of 135 allowed Englandtablish a significant innings lead as scored 421 captain Joe contributing

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REUTERS — BRISBANE

An injury-ravaged India have shown tremendous resilience to stay afloat in the four-Test series against Australia and Mohammed Siraj best illus-trated their never-say-die attitude with his maiden five-wicket haul in the Brisbane decider yesterday.

It has been an emo-tionally testing tour for the 26-year-old who lost his father in November but stayed on to make his test debut in Melbourne.

His mental strength was further tested in Sydney, where a section of the crowd targeted him, prompting an investigation into India’s allegation of racial abuse of some of their players.

Heading into Brisbane, Siraj found himself leading a depleted Indian pace attack that included Shardul Thakur and Navdeep Saini, both of whom had played only one test, plus debutant T Natarajan.

The left-arm quick responded by claiming 5-73 to help to dismiss Australia for 294 in their second innings at the Gabba.

“I’m grateful I got this

opportunity to play for India and managed a five-for. I wish my father was around to see it,” an emotional Siraj told a video conference.

“It was tough after he passed away. I spoke to my family and gained strength after talking to my mother. My focus was to fulfil my father’s dream of me playing a test match for India.”

Siraj has done a lot more than that and will finish the series as India’s most suc-cessful bowler with 13 wickets from three Tests.

As he led the side off the field, Siraj received a standing ovation from his team mates and was hugged by India’s pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah, who missed the match with an abdomen injury.

Tributes also flowed from former players for a per-formance that helped to keep the series level at 1-1.

“Wonderful moment for M o h a m m e d S i r a j . Deserving in so many ways but even more so because of what he’s been through the last few months. His father would be so proud,” former England women’s cricketer Isa Guha.

08TUESDAY 19 JANUARY 2021SportNBA: Clippers beat Pacers for first 4-game winning streakAP - LOS ANGELES

Marcus Morris scored a season-high 20 points to lead seven players in double figures, and the Los Angeles Clippers defeated the Indiana Pacers 129-96 for their first four-game winning streak of the season.

With sharpshooter Lou Wil-liams sidelined, Morris came off the bench to hit four 3-pointers, tying his season-high. He was coming off an 18-point per-formance at Sacramento on Friday. The Clippers made 19 of 39 from long-range, outdueling the Pacers, who were 11 of 38.

“I was wide-open,” Morris said. “If I can’t make a wide-open shot, I’m in the wrong business.”

Fellow reserve Luke Kennard added season highs of 20 points and five 3-pointers. Paul George also had 20 points. Kawhi Leonard had 17 points, seven rebounds and five assists for the Clippers.

“I feel like our energy is way better this season,” Morris said. “Guys are buying in and enjoying playing the game.”

Doug McDermott led the Pacers with 23 points, making five 3-pointers. Domantas Sabonis added 19 points and 14 rebounds.

Indiana closed within two points early in the third before the Clippers put the game away.

New York Knicks 107 Boston Celtics 75

Julius Randle and RJ Barrett each posted double-doubles as the visiting New York Knicks snapped a five-game losing streak with their most lopsided win in almost five years, a 105-75 rout of the Boston Celtics. The Knicks never trailed in producing their biggest margin of victory since March 9, 2016, when they defeated the Phoenix Suns, 128-97. It was also New York's most lopsided victory over the Celtics since a 102-70 win on Nov. 4, 1997.

The Celtics, who had their five-game winning streak snapped, suffered their most lopsided defeat since a 116-86 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers in Game 3 of the Eastern Con-ference Finals on May 19, 2018. Boston's 75 points were its fewest in the regular season since an 83-75 loss to the Miami Heat on Jan. 1, 2015.

They scored 72 in a playoff loss to the Atlanta Hawks in 2016.

Randle finished with 20 points and 12 rebounds while Barrett had 19 and 11, respec-tively. Immanuel Quickley had 17 points and a team-high eight assists off the bench while Obi Toppin (12 points) and Reggie

Bullock (11 points) also got into double digits.

Chicago Bulls 117 - Dallas Mavericks 101

Lauri Markkanen had a season-high 29 points to go with 10 rebounds and Garrett Temple scored 17 of his season-high 21 points in the first half as Chicago snapped a four-game losing streak by beating host Dallas. Bench scoring and ball movement boosted the Bulls, whose reserves outscored the Mavericks' 61-22. Chicago shot 50.6 percent behind six scorers in double figures while finishing with 32 assists against 13 turnovers.

Chicago's defense produced a season-best 14 steals to help

overcome a triple-double from Dallas' Luka Doncic, who amassed a game-high 36 points, 16 rebounds and 15 assists. Doncic scored 30 points in the first half on 11-of-19 shooting, establishing a new career best for scoring in the first 24 minutes.

Utah Jazz 109 - Denver Nuggets 105

Jordan Clarkson led Utah with a team-high 23 points off the bench and Donovan Mitchell finished with 18 points to lead visiting Utah past Denver.

Bojan Bogdanovic, who couldn't play against Denver in the playoffs because of a wrist injury, was a bright spot for Utah with 17 points.

Nikola Jokic continued his torrid start to the season with 35 points, 14 rebounds and nine assists, but Denver fell behind early, finally took a lead, but couldn't fend off the Jazz in the second half.

New Orleans Pelicans 128 - Sacramento Kings 123

Zion Williamson scored 31 points and Brandon Ingram added 22 as New Orleans ended a five-game losing streak by hanging on for a victory over host Sacramento.

Eric Bledsoe had a season-high 21 points as the Pelicans won a game for the first time since Jan. 2 against the Toronto Raptors.

New Orleans is now 1-2 on a six-game road trip that orig-inally was scheduled for seven games before a matchup at Dallas on Jan. 11 was postponed.

De'Aaron Fox scored a career-high 43 points with 13 assists for the Kings, while Marvin Bagley III added 26 points and 10 rebounds as Sac-ramento lost for the fifth time in its last six games. The Kings went 2-5 during their just-com-pleted stretch of seven consec-utive home games.

Los Angeles Clippers guard Paul George (13) is defended by Indiana Pacers forward Domantas Sabonis (11) as he drives to the basket in the second half of their NBA game at Staples Centre.

Kevin Na hoists the trophy during the final round of the Sony Open golf tournament at Waialae Country Club in Honolulu, Hawaii, USA.

Spirited finish as Kevin Na wins Sony OpenREUTERS - HONOLULU

Kevin Na overcame a three-stroke deficit with six holes to play with three straight birdies and another on the 18th hole to win the Sony Open in Honolulu on Sunday.

Na carded a 5-under-par 65 on Sunday to finish at 21-under 259 at Waialae Country Club.

The 37-year-old Na recorded his fifth PGA Tour victory by edging Chris Kirk and Chile’s Joaquin Niemann, who tied for second one shot back. Kirk carded his fourth consecutive round of 65 after collecting seven birdies against two bogeys. He earned enough FedEx Cup points to remain under the Major Medical Extension for the remainder of the season.

Niemann’s five-birdie, one-bogey performance resulted in a 66 on Sunday and his second straight runner-up finish. He lost in a playoff at last week’s Sentry Tournament of Champions.

Webb Simpson, who was the last player to finish second in consecutive weeks on the PGA Tour, matched a low-round 64 to end up tied for fourth place on Sunday.

Simpson was knotted up with Australian Marc Leishman (65) and third-round leader Brendan Steele (69), who finished at 19-under for the tournament. Na said after the round that he “felt pretty comfortable all day,” and he needed the strong back nine to get in position for the win.

After his only bogey of the day on No. 12, Na rattled off three straight birdies starting with a 15-foot putt on 13.

“I knew there was a lot of birdie holes left,” Na said. “I was having fun out there.”

Kirk was in the clubhouse and eyeing a playoff when Na wrapped it up on No. 18. Na’s second shot flew the green, but his chip shot to within a foot set up the clinching birdie. The victory allowed Na to record tournament wins in each of the last four seasons.

Yandle gets 100th NHL goal; Panthers beat BlackhawksAP - SUNRISE

Keith Yandle got his 100th career goal, Chris Driedger made 23 saves and the Florida Panthers beat the Chicago Blackhawks 5-2 on Sunday night.

Eetu Luostarinen scored his first NHL goal, and Aaron Ekblad, Patric Hornqvist, and Jonathan Huberdeau also scored for Florida, which had three goals in the third period to pull away in its delayed opener. The Panthers were to have played Dallas last week twice, games that were called off because of a COVID-19 out-break among the Stars.

Alex DeBrincat and Connor Murphy scored for the Black-hawks. Collin Delia stopped 24

shots. As late as last Friday, it seemed as if Yandle was going to be scratched from this game and break his string of playing in 866 consecutive regular-season games, the longest active streak in the NHL. Instead, Yandle scored the goal and extended his streak to 867.

Yandle, whose status on Florida’s active roster was a hot topic during camp, scored in the second period.

His goal made it 2-0, and he celebrated wildly afterward -- a bit of an uncharacteristic reaction for the veteran defenseman.

The Blackhawks are 0-3-0, the first time they have not managed even one point in the season’s first three games since 1997-98.

This is only the 10th time it has happened in the franchise’s 94 seasons.

Yandle’s streak of games played is the fourth-longest in NHL history.

He trails Doug Jarvis (964 games from 1975 through 1987), Garry Unger (914 games from 1968 through 1979) and Steve Larmer (884 games from 1982 through 1993) on the all-time list. Yandle has not missed a game since March 22, 2009, when he was with the Arizona Coyotes.

Patrick Kane’s assist on Chi-cago’s first goal was his 634th career regular-season assist. That tied Neal Broten for eighth place on the NHL’s all-time list among US-born players.

Of the 22 players on the

opening night roster, only 10 played a game with Florida in 2019-20.

The Panthers were 29th in the 31-team league in attendance last season but are

the early leaders this season. They drew 4.147 for the opener; that’s more than the 2,329 that the Arizona Coyotes averaged in their first two home games.

The Panthers and Coyotes

are the only teams so far to have fans. Dallas, which is scheduled to open Friday, is also planning to have fans. The Panthers cur-rently allow up to 25% capacity at games.

Washington Capitals center Evgeny Kuznetsov (92) hits the post behind Pittsburgh Penguins goaltender Casey DeSmith (1) during the third period at the PPG Paints Arena. Pittsburgh won 4-3 in overtime.

Rugby: Erasmus open to Lions series in Britain, IrelandAP - CAPE TOWN

South Africa director of rugby Rassie Erasmus is open to the Springboks’ series against the British and Irish Lions being played away if that ensures it’s not cancelled.

Erasmus said yesterday the Springboks “will go to option Z” to make the three-test series happen amid the coronavirus pandemic.

He stressed, though, it would be the senior leadership of South African rugby and the Lions organization who make the final decision on whether the series in July and August goes ahead as planned in South Africa, is played elsewhere, or is postponed.

“We desperately want to play them,” Erasmus said. “We will do any-thing to play them.

“Option A, option B, we will go to option Z... We will play next year, we will play there (in Britain and Ireland), we will play here.”

South Africa’s 2019 Rugby World Cup-winning coach also revealed he, his wife and his children had recently

contracted COVID-19. They had all recovered, Erasmus said, after he and his wife were “in a bad shape” for 5-6 days.

Erasmus’ comments on this year’s scheduled Lions tour were the first sig-nificant reaction from South Africa after reports emerged that a contin-gency plan was being considered that would have the Springboks travelling instead of the Lions, and the tests being played in Dublin, Cardiff and London instead of Johannesburg and Cape Town.

South Africa is in the grip of a second wave of the virus that has been described by the country’s president and health authorities as worse than the first.

South Africa also has not started vaccinating its people, making it unlikely that fans would be allowed into stadiums to watch Lions games in South Africa.

No supporters have been allowed into any major sports events in South Africa since the start of the pandemic.

With a vaccination program

underway in Britain, there is a realistic prospect of having crowds at games there by the summer, even if numbers are limited.

No fans would make the tour financially unviable for South Africa

board, with host countries relying on match ticket income and tens of thou-sands of Lions fans travelling for the series.

The Lions, made up of players from England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales,

tour once every four years and visit South Africa, Australia and New Zealand on a rotational basis. That means the opportunity to host a Lions series only comes around once every 12 years for each country.

A final decision on this tour is expected to be taken in mid-February, with talks ongoing between rugby offi-cials and various government depart-ments and broadcast partners, the Lions have said.

South African rugby is relying on a profitable Lions series to pull it out of deep financial trouble because of the pandemic.

The Springboks haven’t played a test since winning the World Cup in Japan in November 2019.

They pulled out of last year’s Rugby Championship because players had been sidelined for more than six months by the pandemic and were not ready to play.

Erasmus said the Springboks had “sacrificed” the Rugby Championship to give its players time to be ready for the Lions series.

South Africa president Cyril Ramaphosa with head coach Rassie Erasmus and Siya Kolisi lift the trophy during a Rugby World Cup trophy tour stop in Pretoria, South Africa, in this November 7, 2019 file photo.