Category: 6. Sports

The opening of the aquatic facility represents phase one of the club’s broader Centre of Excellence project, which is being delivered in partnership with the NSW Government’s Office of Sport and the Australian Football League. 

The program is focused on creating elite sporting infrastructure that not only supports high-performance outcomes but also delivers broader benefits to the community, particularly in the areas of talent development, inclusion, and community access. 

Purpose-built in conjunction with FDC Construction, the aquatic centre represents a major milestone in the evolution of the GIANTS’ elite sport training environment and is a significant investment in the future of high-performance sport and community engagement in Western Sydney. 

It is integrated as part of the club’s headquarters that was also designed by Populous and opened in 2013, providing a Training and Administration facility that strengthens the status and identity of the GIANTS Football Club and inspires players and staff. 

Today marks the eleventh anniversary of Real Madrid‘s second Uefa Super Cup. On 12 August 2014, after securing La Décima a few months earlier, the Whites lifted a fresh continental trophy in Cardiff (Wales), where they defeated Sevilla courtesy of a Cristiano Ronaldo double (2-0). The Portuguese was named MVP of the match, which marked the official debut of one of our great legends: Toni Kroos.

Real Madrid broke the deadlock on the half-hour mark when Cristiano Ronaldo finished off a delightful cross from Bale on the left. In the second half, the Portuguese forward sealed the game with an angled drive. With this victory, the Madridistas lifted the trophy again, 12 years after the first Uefa Super Cup.

MATCH INFO:
2- Real Madrid: Casillas, Carvajal, Ramos, Pepe, Coentrão (Marcelo, 84’), Modric (Illarramendi, 86’), Kroos, James (Isco, 72’), Bale, Cristiano Ronaldo, Benzema.
0- Sevilla: Beto, Coke (Diogo, 84’), Pareja, Carriço, Fazio, Fernando Navarro, Krychowiak, Aleix Vidal (Iago Aspas, 66’), Vitolo, Denis (Reyes, 78’), Bacca.

Goals:
1-0 (min. 30): Cristiano Ronaldo.
2-0 (min. 49): Cristiano Ronaldo.
Referee: Mark Clattenburg (England).
Venue: Cardiff City Stadium.

What are the official rules for Olympic ski mountaineering?

Britain’s Emma Raducanu fell agonisingly short of beating world number one Aryna Sabalenka and earning a statement win at the Cincinnati Open.

Raducanu, 22, lost 7-6 (7-3) 4-6 7-6 (7-5) as defending champion Sabalenka edged a battle lasting more than three hours to reach the fourth round.

Having also pushed Sabalenka at Wimbledon, Raducanu’s performance was further evidence she can severely test the world’s best as her revival continues.

This season, with the British number one’s fitness issues largely behind her and the development of greater resilience, she has climbed back into the top 40.

“As I said at Wimbledon I am really happy to see her healthy – mentally and physically,” said Sabalenka.

“Every time she is improving and I can see she is getting back to her best.

“I’m enjoying fighting against her – she is such an incredible player.”

Raducanu could be seeded among the leading 32 players at the upcoming US Open, providing a more favourable draw – in theory at least – at the hard-court Grand Slam which she won as a teenage qualifier in 2021.

On the basis of this display against Sabalenka, there are plenty of positives for Raducanu to take into the final major of the season.

DUBLIN:

Wicketkeeper-batter Muneeba Ali struck her second T20I century to lead Pakistan Women to a consolation eight-wicket win against Ireland Women in the third and final T20I of the series here at the Clontarf Cricket Club in Dublin on Sunday afternoon.

Muneeba’s 100 not out off 68 balls led Pakistan over the line as they chased the 156-run target with 14 balls to spare. The left hander remains the only Pakistan batter to register a T20I century in Women’s T20Is after she first achieved the feat against the same opposition in February 2023 off 66 balls.

This is also Pakistan’s highest successful chase in Women’s T20Is and joint-highest second innings score surpassing their previous successful chase of 151-run target against South Africa in Karachi in 2023.

In pursuit of the chase, Pakistan finished the Powerplay with 55 runs on the board for the loss of opening batter Shawaal Zulfiqar and Natalia Parvaiz, who was promoted up the order. Muneeba opened the innings with a hat-trick of fours against Prandergast before striking another six fours and one six in the following five overs.

No.4 batter Aliya Riaz combined with the southpaw from Karachi to produce a magnificent unbeaten 101-run stand off 70 balls for the third wicket, which is also just the fourth century stand for Pakistan. Muneeba has been part of two of two such stands.

Muneeba brought up her half-century of 29 balls, while at the halfway mark Pakistan required 72 runs. Aliya contributed a 27-ball 39 not out with the help of five fours as Pakistan chased the total in 17.4 overs. The winning run also brought up Muneeba’s record century comprising 14 fours and one six.

For Ireland, Ava Canning and Lara McBride picked up one wicket each.

Earlier, Ireland got off to a rapid start with skipper Gaby Lewis (36, 22b, 8x4s) and Amy Hunter (29, 33b, 3x4s, 1×6) jotting together 52-run opening stand off 32 balls.

Player of the series Orla Prandergast struck 64 not out, off 46 balls hitting eight boundaries to steer the home team to 155-4 in 20 overs. For Pakistan, Rameen Shamim, Waheeda Akhtar, Sadia Iqbal and Fatima Sana dismissed one batter each.

Scores in brief

Match 3 of 3: Pakistan beat Ireland by eight wickets at the Clontarf Cricket Club

Ireland 155-4, 20 overs (Orla Prandergast 64 not out, Gaby Lewis 36, Amy Hunter 29; Rameen Shamin 1-18)

Pakistan 156-2, 17.4 overs (Muneeba Ali 100 not out, Aliya Riaz 29 not out; Ava Canning 1-17)

Player of the match – Muneeba Ali (Pakistan Women)

Player of the series – Orla Prandergast (Ireland Women)

Manchester City considering move for Rodrygo, Nottingham Forest close to agreeing deal for James McAtee, and Chelsea and RB Leipzig discuss Christopher Nkunku in talks for Xavi Simons.

Manchester City are considering a move for Real Madrid’s 24-year-old Brazil forward Rodrygo, who is valued at £87m. (Fabrizio Romano), external

Nottingham Forest are close to agreeing a deal for Manchester City’s 22-year-old English midfielder James McAtee. (Athletic – subscription required), external

Chelsea and RB Leipzig have discussed France forward Christopher Nkunku, 27, during talks about Netherlands attacker Xavi Simons, 22. (Talksport), external

Monaco are interested in signing Newcastle’s 34-year-old former England defender Kieran Trippier. (Sky Sports), external

West Ham are preparing a bid for Southampton’s 21-year-old Portugal Under-21s midfielder Mateus Fernandes, who is valued at £30m. (Guardian), external

Sweden striker Alexander Isak, 25, will only consider reintegrating at Newcastle or signing a new deal if Liverpool directly inform him a deal is impossible this summer. (Givemesport), external

Inter Milan, Roma, Juventus and Napoli have joined AC Milan in expressing an interest in Rasmus Hojlund, with Manchester United ready to consider bids of £30m-£40m for the 22-year-old Denmark striker. (The i – subscription required), external

England midfielder Jack Grealish’s loan move from Manchester City to Everton includes a £50m option to buy the 29-year-old next summer. (Athletic – subscription required), external

Chelsea have lodged a £43m offer for 26-year-old Liverpool and France centre-back Ibrahima Konate. (Defensa Central – in Spanish), external

Brentford and Newcastle are in talks to sign Stade Rennais’ French striker Arnaud Kalimuendo, with the Bees slightly more advanced in negotiations for the 23-year-old. (L’Equipe – in French), external

Newcastle also have a strong interest in Leicester City and Morocco attacking midfielder Bilal El Khannouss, 21, but face competition from Leeds. (Telegraph), external

Everton are interested in Leicester’s 21-year-old Ghana winger Abdul Fatawu after failing with multiple bids for Southampton’s 19-year-old England Under-21s winger Tyler Dibling. (Sky Sports), external

Dominic Calvert-Lewin has sacked his agent as he attempts to find a new club. The 28-year-old England striker has held talks with Manchester United, Newcastle and Leeds. (Talksport), external

Wolfsburg are interested in Sunderland’s 23-year-old Northern Ireland full-back Trai Hume. (Sky Sports), external

Chelsea are considering a move for Bayer Leverkusen and Ecuador defender Piero Hincapie, 23, following 22-year-old England centre-back Levi Colwill’s serious knee injury. (Caughtoffside), external

German midfielder Ilkay Gundogan, 34, is keen to stay at Manchester City beyond the end of the summer transfer window despite interest from Galatasaray. (Football Insider), external

TRINIDAD:

Pakistan captain Mohammad Rizwan acknowledged a dilemma over the fifth bowler and said they would take a late decision on their team combination for Tuesday’s series decider following their defeat in the second one-day international on Sunday.

Pakistan, who won the opening ODI by five wickets, posted a competitive 171-7 in 37 overs in a rain-truncated match but West Indies prevailed by five wickets to draw level in the three-match series.

Pakistan’s part-time duo of Saim Ayub and Salman Agha conceded a combined 66 runs in seven wicketless overs as West Indies cruised home.

“You could say our fifth bowler gave away too many runs but in recent years, Salman Agha and Saim Ayub have both bowled well for us,” Rizwan said after the match.

“Saim didn’t have the best day today, but he performed well in the T20Is. That’s just part of the game.”

Rizwan said they could not read the conditions and several rain delays did not help their cause.

“Honestly, the weather forecast has been completely different from expectations, and it’s hard to read.

“We’re keeping our options open and will finalise the XI after assessing the conditions.”

Pakistan had won the preceding Twenty20 series 2-1.

Slip in rankings

The International Cricket Council (ICC) released the latest One Day International (ODI) rankings on Monday, revealing a shift in the positions of several teams, including a drop for Pakistan.

Pakistan’s ODI ranking slipped one spot, moving from fourth to fifth place, currently holding 3,465 points.

This decline came as Sri Lanka surged ahead, overtaking Pakistan to claim the fourth position with 4,009 points.

The West Indies also saw an improvement, climbing one spot to ninth place. This advancement pushed Bangladesh down to the tenth position after they dropped one rank.

India continued to dominate the ODI rankings at the top, amassing 4,471 points. New Zealand hold steady in second place with 4,160 points, while Australia is positioned third with 3,473 points.

South Africa sit in sixth place with 2,775 points, and Afghanistan holds the seventh spot with 2,279 points.

For the unversed, the West Indies secured a thrilling five-wicket victory over Pakistan in the rain-affected second ODI here at Tarouba on Sunday.

The win, powered by crucial innings from Roston Chase and Sherfane Rutherford along with important contributions from captain Shai Hope, leveled the series 1-1.

The match was reduced to 35 overs due to rain interruptions. Chasing a target of 181, West Indies got an early scare as Hasan Ali dismissed opener Brandon King for just one run in the second over.

Hasan struck again shortly after to remove Evin Lewis, who scored seven, leaving the hosts struggling at 12-2 inside 3.1 overs.

The West Indies middle order came under pressure after Keacy Carty fell cheaply for 16, handing Abrar Ahmed his first wicket.

Sherfane Rutherford then launched an aggressive assault, putting Pakistan’s bowlers under severe pressure.

Abrar conceded 20 runs in Rutherford’s over as the fourth-wicket partnership flourished.

Mohammad Nawaz broke the partnership by dismissing Shai Hope, who made 32 off 35 balls, including two boundaries and a six.

Rutherford was nearing his fifty but was also dismissed by Nawaz after scoring 45 off 33 deliveries, featuring four boundaries and three sixes.

With the match slipping away, Roston Chase and Justin Greaves formed a crucial 73-run partnership.

Chase remained unbeaten on 49 from 47 balls while Greaves contributed 26 runs off 31 deliveries, guiding West Indies to victory in 33.2 overs.

Pakistan’s rising squash talent, Muhammad Umair Arif from Peshawar, delivered an exceptional performance at The Jessica Company Hong Kong Junior Squash Open 2025, finishing as 1st Runner-Up after an intense final against the tournament’s top-seeded player from Saudi Arabia.

Sponsored by BARD Foundation, Umair’s journey to the finals was marked by remarkable victories, including defeating higher-seeded international players from Japan, the USA, and Singapore. His consistent dominance on the court reflects the skill and determination that have defined his career so far.

Umair represented Pakistan in the World Squash Junior Championships this year, where he showcased his talent on another prestigious international platform.

Mehreen Dawood, member Board of Governors BARD Foundation, praised Umair’s achievement, stating:”Umair’s performance is a testament to the fact that Pakistan continues to produce world-class sports talent. At BARD Foundation, our mission is to nurture and support such potential, enabling athletes to shine internationally. We are incredibly proud of his hard work and determination.”

Abdul Razak Dawood, President of BARD Foundation, added:

“Supporting athletes like Umair is central to our vision of building a stronger sports culture in Pakistan. His achievement in Hong Kong is not just a personal milestone but an inspiration for the next generation of players. We look forward to seeing him achieve even greater success in the years ahead.”