Saturday March 17, 2018
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Kaieteur News
Ruthless Federer sends Chung Rabada’s appeal hearing set for March 19 packing, faces Coric next
Kagiso Rabada finished with 5 for 96. (AFP) ESPNcricinfo - Kagiso Rabada’s appeal hearing against a Level 2 sanction which cost him three demerit points and a 50% fine of his Port Elizabeth match fee will take place on March 19. The ICC have appointed New Zealand’s Michael Heron as the judicial commissioner and the hearing will be held via video conference. Heron will have 48 hours to reach a decision, which means Rabada will learn his fate by Wednesday. If cleared, he could play in the Newlands Test that starts on Friday. Heron is a judicial commissioner for New Zealand Rugby and SANZAAR, the
body which operates rugby competitions between South Africa, New Zealand, Australia and Argentina. He is also a national commissioner for New Zealand Cricket and a member of the ICC’s code of conduct commission and dispute resolution committee. Rabada will be represented by high-profile South African advocate, Dali Mpofu.Rabada was found guilty of making inappropriate and deliberate contact with Steven Smith after dismissing him in the first innings of the second Test between South Africa and Australia at St George’s Park. After having Smith trapped lbw, Rabada screamed “yes, yes,
yes” in the direction of Smith, and then made contact with his shoulder on his way to celebrating with team-mates. In the aftermath, Rabada maintained he did not feel any contact and would not have contested the charge if he had. Rabada went into the fixture on five demerit points and the incident took him to eight, which equated to a two-Test ban. Rabada also earned a ninth demerit point when he gave David Warner a sendoff in the second innings but did not contest that charge. That means if Rabada is cleared he will still have six demerit points to his name and will remain two away from a suspension.
VAR: Video assistant referees will be used at 2018 World Cup in Russia BBC Sport - Video assistant referees will be used at the World Cup for the first time after Fifa formally approved the technology for this year’s tournament. VAR has been trialled in some domestic English cup games this season, and has been used in Germany and Italy. “We need to live with the times,” said Fifa president Gianni Infantino. “We wanted to give the referees tools so they can make better decisions, and in the World Cup some very important decisions are made.” H e a d d e d : “ I t ’s n o t possible that in 2018 everyone in their living room knows a few seconds after the play whether a referee has made a mistake and the referee doesn’t.” VAR was first used at the Club World Cup in De-
cember 2016, and trialled in the 2017 Confederations Cup. The system was described as “comical” and “embarrassing” after Tottenham’s 6-1 FA Cup win over Rochdale in late February, when a goal was disallowed and a converted penalty overturned. The Premier League is not expected to introduce VAR next season, and Uefa has already said it will not be used in the 2018-19 Champions League. Spain’s La Liga and France’s Ligue 1 are to introduce it from next season, while the Bundesliga will decide on 22 March. “I was sceptical at first, but without trying you c a n n o t k n o w w h a t i t ’s worth,” Infantino added. “Without VAR, a referee can make one important mistake every three matches. With VAR, the
figures we have seen from the trials that have been held show that a big mistake is made once every 19 matches.” The world governing body’s formal announcement comes after the International Football Association Board (Ifab) “unanimously approved” the introduction of VAR on a permanent basis earlier this month. Ifab is made up of Fifa and the Football Associations of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. Each FA has one vote to Fifa’s four, with six votes required for a change in the laws. The body made the decision to approve the technology following the results of independent analysis conducted by Belgian university KU Leuven.
(Reuters) - South Korean Chung Hyeon managed to hang around against Roger Federer a little longer this time around, but only just, as the Swiss maestro advanced to the semi-finals of the BNP Paribas Open 7-5 6-1 on Thursday. Chung’s fairytale run at the Australian Open in January came to a crashing halt when he retired with foot blisters while trailing Federer 6-1 5-2 in their semi-final. Federer, who won his 20th grand slam title with his victory at Melbourne Park, was ruthless with his 21-year-old opponent once again on Thursday and took his unbeaten run this year to 16 matches, equaling his record from 12 years ago. Chung said he had enjoyed going toe-to-toe with Federer in a tight first set. “I was down one break, and I’m just trying to stay calm and I’m just trying to learn from Roger,” the Korean told the ATP’s official website. “And I come back, five-all, and he played good. I’m really happy to play against Roger.” Federer will next meet Borna Coric, who defeated world number nine Kevin Anderson 2-6 6-4 7-6(3). The 21-year-old Croatian had initially looked outgunned by the big-serving South African, who had won
all three of their previous meetings without dropping a set. After weathering an onslaught of huge serves in the first set, however, Coric was able to force longer rallies in the second and third, where his speed and accuracy allowed him to control points. “I didn’t start very well. He was hitting the ball very big, and I just couldn’t find my rhythm on the ball,” Coric said. “I started going more for the serve. And then I broke him earlier in the second set, which was really helpful.
“In the third, again, I knew it’s one break, it’s two or three points that are going to decide, and that’s what happened.” The match appeared all but over in the third when a frustrated Coric double faulted to hand Anderson a break for a 4-2 lead but the world number 49 broke straight back and went on to force a tie-breaker. Anderson was ragged thereafter and Coric pumped his fist in triumph after the seventh seed sent a forehand long to hand the Croatian the biggest win of his career.
Raptors 106, Pacers 99 INDIANAPOLIS - DeMar DeRozan scored 24 points, Jonas Valanciunas added 16 points and 17 rebounds, and Toronto rallied late to get past Indiana for a 10th straight victory. The Raptors need one more win to tie the franchise’s longest winning streak. They haven’t lost since Feb. 23 and broke a tie with the 2016-17 squad for longest road winning streak, which is now at eight. But it sure wasn’t easy on a night Darron Collison scored 22 points and Al Jefferson had a season-high 20 for Indiana. The Pacers took the lead late in the first quarter and didn’t trail again until midway through the fourth. Hornets 129, Hawks 117 ATLANTA - Dwight Howard scored 20 of his season-high 33 points in the second half, Nicolas Batum had a triple-double and set a career high with 16 assists, and Charlotte beat Atlant. Kemba Walker added 24 points and Marvin Williams had 17 for Charlotte, which kept its slim
playoff hopes alive. The Hornets began the night having lost six of seven and were in 10th place in the Eastern Conference, 61/2 games behind No. 8 Miami with 13 games remaining. Taurean Prince finished with 22 points and rookie John Collins tied a career high with 21 for Atlanta, the worst team in the East at 20-49. Rockets 101, Clippers 96 HOUSTON - James Harden scored 24 points, Eric Gordon added 23 and Houston outlasted the Los Angeles Clippers. The Clippers scored six straight points, with four from Austin Rivers, to cut the lead to a basket with less than a minute left. But on the next possession, Harden stepped back and knocked down a long 2-pointer with Rivers in his face to make it 100-96. Rivers missed a 3-pointer after that before Harden made one of two free throws with 6.2 seconds left to secure the victory. It’s Houston’s third straight win and snaps a three-game winning streak for the Clippers. Tobias Harris led
the Clippers with 29 points and Rivers had 20. 76ers 118, Knicks 110 NEW YORK - Joel Embiid had 29 points and 10 rebounds, Ben Simmons finished with a triple-double, and Philadelphia used a big final period to rally past New York. The Sixers, who hold the sixth spot in the Eastern Conference playoff race, trailed by as many as 13 points in the third quarter before storming back in the final period, going on a 20-6 run during the last five minutes of regulation. Simmons finished with 13 points, 12 assists and 10 rebounds. Dario Saric had 21 points and 12 boards, JJ Redick added 18 points and Robert Covington chipped in 15 for Philadelphia, which was able to rebound from a tough loss Tuesday night to the Indiana Pacers, who currently own the fourth seed in the East. Michael Beasley had 24 points and 13 rebounds, and Courtney Lee and Trey Burke each contributed 16 points for the Knicks, who have lost a (Continued om page 30)
Roger Federer is hoping to defend his Indian Wells title. (Getty Images)
NBA roundup: Thursday’s games