Sports

AMMAN — Some of Jordan’s top swimmers are heading for a winter training camp in Qatar to help them prepare for the busy season ahead, according to the Jordan Olympic Committee News Service.

The Jordanians will train with the local swimmers and benefit from the warmer weather training as well as access to 50m pools.

The year promises to be an exciting one for Jordan with the Asian Games and Youth Olympics just two of the big events on the calendar.

They will launch their international participation in April at the Dubai International Swimming Championships.

The team travelling to Qatar include Amro Al wer, Mohammad Jaber, Seif Hatbeh, Hamzeh Al Basha, Zeiad Al Sal’ous and females Lydia Al Safadi, Yasmeen Al Bdour, Denis Qurshah, Lara Aklok and Cynthia Al Susi.

AMMAN — Unbeaten Wihdat took one more step towards the Jordan Volleyball League title with a comfortable 3-0 over Eira in the Sports Palace at Al Hussein Youth City, according to the Jordan Olympic Committee News Service.

Wihdat recorded their sixth win in a row to top the table. Meanwhile, Awdah beat Shabab Al Hussein, 3-0, in the later match at the Sports Palace.

MELBOURNE — Maria Sharapova’s hopes of a title-winning return to the Australian Open were unceremoniously crushed by Angelique Kerber as the battle of the former champions ended 6-1, 6-3 in the German’s favour on Saturday. 

The Rod Laver Arena evening clash between the only two Grand Slam winners left in the women’s draw had the feel of a showpiece final rather than a third-round match-up but only 21st seed Kerber rose to the occasion. 

Unseeded Russian Sharapova, back in Melbourne after testing positive for a banned substance following her quarter-final defeat by Serena Williams here in 2016, which resulted in a 15-month ban, had looked menacing in the opening two rounds. 

But the form she showed in beating 14th seeded Latvian Anastasija Sevastova deserted her. 

Kerber, who plummeted down the rankings last year after finishing the previous campaign at number one, broke Sharapova’s serve in the first game of the match and that set the tone. 

The German made only seven unforced errors in the 64-minute contest and, on the court on which she stunned Serena Williams to win the title two years ago, celebrated victory with the look of a woman who firmly believes she is back in business. 

”Of course this was quite a big match,“ Kerber, who began working with new coach Wim Fissette at the end of last year, told reporters. ”Maria is a champion. She’s always dangerous, especially at the Grand Slams. 

“But I was really trying to not think about everything around and everything about the match, about against who I was playing. I was just more trying to go out on the special court for me and play good tennis.”

Erratic Sharapova

Kerber streaked away with the first set, aided by the erratic nature of Sharapova’s game, and although the 2008 champion briefly threatened a fightback after falling behind in the second, it was not to be the Russian’s night. 

An error-prone Sharapova double-faulted on the way to dropping serve to trail 0-2 in the second set. 

The Russian replied with a break of her own and when she slapped a running forehand winner down the line to make it 2-2 it appeared battle was truly about to commence. 

Alarm bells were ringing for Kerber when Sharapova rifled away a backhand winner to earn a break point at 3-3, but the Russian missed a regulation forehand to waste the chance. 

Four unforced errors, including a flimsy attempt at a drop shot at 15-30, allowed 2016 champion Kerber a break and some breathing space and the German finished the contest with ease. 

Sharapova, playing only her second Grand Slam since returning from her doping suspension, took it on the chin. 

“I don’t want to take anything away from her and the way she played. I think she played extremely well,” said the Russian. 

“She was the more aggressive player. She took a lot more risks than I did. I didn’t return well. I gave her the confidence by making a lot of errors on the return games.” 

Kerber will face either 26th seed Agnieszka Radwanska or Hsieh Su-Wei of Taiwan in the next round.

MELBOURNE — Nick Kyrgios’s new-found calm remained intact despite a night of bizarre distractions as the fiery home favourite outplayed Serbia’s Viktor Troicki to reach the Australian Open third round without conceding a set on Wednesday.

The 17th seed dealt with a heckling spectator, a malfunctioning umpire’s microphone and was even distracted by a helicopter hovering overhead but remained in control to claim an impressive 7-5, 6-4, 7-6(2) victory.

A year after the 22-year-old was jeered by home fans after surrendering a two-set lead against Italian Andreas Seppi to crash out in the second round, he produced more evidence that a run deep into the second week is possible.

His idol, Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, the 2008 Australian Open runner-up, is next up for Kyrgios who is trying to become the first home men’s champion since Mark Edmondson in 1976.

The 31-year-old Troicki provided a useful gauge of Kyrgios’s form and fitness, but it was the Australian’s relative calmness in the face of chaos that stood out.

He was already a set in front when a fan decided to make a name for himself by standing up in the front row in the Hisense Arena and began bellowing “Oh Yeahhhhhh” while filming himself before being ejected.

A couple of games later a red helicopter hovered above the court, drowning out the sound of the ball being struck.

All that on top of the umpire’s microphone making strange noises which prompted Kyrgios to describe events as “a circus”.

There was plenty of chuntering from Kyrgios but apart from “freaking out” after a late lapse when he dropped serve at 5-4 in the third, he stuck diligently to his task.

Odd incidents

“I think obviously it’s pretty easy to think, ‘Why me?’” Kyrgios said of the odd incidents. “The guy in the crowd was crazy. I didn’t really know what was going on.”

“The helicopter, that’s when I was thinking like, of course, it’s at my match. It’s just hovering there. Of course, it is.”

“Hearing the ball actually come off the racket is a pretty big thing. I missed four returns. I’m blaming the helicopter.”

Told that the fan had posted his puerile stunt on social media, Kyrgios, who was fined for swearing at a fan on Monday, said: “Good on him. Little claim to fame. Let him have it.”

Kyrgios got a helping hand at 5-5 when Troicki served two consecutive double faults to go 0-40 down and he rifled away a backhand winner after a ferocious baseline exchange.

Two unforced errors from Troicki gifted Kyrgios a break at the start of the second set and he then dipped into his bag of dinks and chips, and slapped winners to take a two-set lead.

Kyrgios broke in the third game of the third set but nothing is ever routine with him and out of nowhere, he was broken himself when serving for the match at 5-4.

“I started freaking out a little bit,” Kyrgios said.

Troicki saved one match point at 1-6 in the tiebreak with a deft volley but Kyrgios struck a backhand into the corner a point later to complete a good night’s work and supply further evidence that he is harnessing his unique talent.

“I think last year, the year before, I probably would have been probably still out on the court right now, could be losing that match,” Kyrgios said.

AMMAN — Jordan is hosting a national Taekwondo Open this weekend hoping to unearth the next Ahmad Abu Ghaush, according to the Jordan Olympic Committee News Service.

With the Olympic gold medallist continuing to impress on the world stage, the Jordan Taekwondo Federation is casting the net far and wide to find fresh talent that could make a global impact.

More than 120 fighters from 46 centres will compete for a place on the various age group national teams that will take part at a March championship in Bulgaria. A second national championship will be held later in the year in August.

Giannis Antetokounmpo had 27 points with a career-high 20 rebounds and the Milwaukee Bucks snapped a two-game skid with a 104-95 victory over the Washington Wizards at Capital One Arena on Monday.

Eric Bledsoe scored 23 for the Bucks, who went 8-of-16 from beyond the arc. Khris Middleton added 19 points for Milwaukee.

It was the Bucks’ second win over the Wizards in the last 10 days, following a 110-103 victory January 6 in Milwaukee.

Grizzlies 123, Lakers 114

Rookie Dillon Brooks led eight players in double figures with 19 points, helping Memphis outlast Los Angeles 123-114 in Memphis.

Tyreke Evans recorded a 15-point, 12-assist double-double for the Grizzlies, who beat the Lakers for the second time in three meetings this season and for the seventh straight time at home.

Playing without standout rookies Lonzo Ball (sprained knee) and Brandon Ingram (sprained ankle), the Lakers saw a season-high four-game winning streak come to an end.

Hawks 102, Spurs 99

Dennis Schroder scored 26 points, including two big buckets in the final 40 seconds, as Atlanta picked up a rare win over San Antonio in a matinee at Philips Arena in Atlanta.

Schroder hit a pull-up jumper and then followed it with a difficult, high-arching left-handed layup to help the Hawks beat the Spurs for only the second time in the last 15 meetings. After Schroder hit a pair of free throws to put the Hawks up three with seven seconds left, Spurs guard Danny Green missed a contested, potential tying 3-pointer as time expired.

Kawhi Leonard sat out for the fifth time in seven games to rest recent shoulder and quad injuries, while the Spurs lost Manu Ginobili to a thigh contusion in the first quarter.

76ers 117, Raptors 111 

Joel Embiid scored 34 points and grabbed 11 rebounds, T.J. McConnell added a career-high 18 points to go along with eight assists and Philadelphia held on for the victory over Toronto at the Wells Fargo Centre in Philadelphia.

It was the seventh career game for Embiid with at least 30 points, and just the second win for the 76ers in the last 20 meetings between the two teams.

J.J. Redick contributed 15 before leaving in the fourth with a reported leg contusion. Ben Simmons added 12 before being ejected in the final minute along with Raptors guard Kyle Lowry, who returned after missing the last three games with a bruised tailbone.

Knicks 119, Nets 104 

Kristaps Porzingis scored 26 points as New York dominated the fourth quarter en route to a 119-104 win over Brooklyn at Barclays Centre.

Michael Beasley added 13 of his 23 points in the fourth quarter for the Knicks, who opened a seven-game road trip by outscoring the Nets 36-23 in the final 12 minutes.

Beasley, whose minutes were reduced the previous two games because of Tim Hardaway Jr’s return from a leg injury, shot 10-of-18 as the Knicks rested Hardaway. He also grabbed 10 rebounds.

Bulls 119, Heat 111

Justin Holiday scored 25 points and Zach LaVine added 18 as Chicago topped red-hot Miami 119-111 at the United Center in Chicago.

Goran Dragic had 22 points and nine assists in a loss that snapped a seven-game winning streak for the Heat, who won at the Milwaukee Bucks on Sunday.

Participating in only his second game of the season, LaVine is the latest player to add life to a Bulls squad that began the season 3-20, but has won 14 of its last 21. Limited to 20 minutes, he made 7 of 12 shots and added five rebounds and five assists.

Hornets 118, Pistons 107

Dwight Howard racked up 21 points, 17 rebounds and four blocks as Charlotte topped Detroit 118-107 in a matinee at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit.

Charlotte shot 45.5 per cent (10-of-22) from long distance to Detroit’s 51.7 per cent (15-of-29), but the Pistons allowed 68 second-half points, while losing for the fifth time in seven games.

AMMAN — Jordan Motorsport, the sporting authority for all motorsport events in Jordan, has revealed its calendar of activities for the 2018 season, with a total of 25 events including speed tests, rallying, karting, drifting and for the first time a Baja Rally.

“We have a very exciting season with more challenging events and a new one which is the Baja Rally,” Jordan Motorsport CEO Othman Naseef told The Jordan Times.

The calendar, which was approved by the board of directors headed by HRH Prince Feisal, will include five Speed tests in addition to the Al Hussein Rumman Hill Climb, five Karting events, five Drifting events, three 4x4 events and four rallies (two on tarmac and two desert rallies).

The Baja Rally is an off-road race in which various types of vehicle classes compete on the same course and includes small and large motorcycles, production vehicles, buggies, trucks and custom race vehicles.

“It will be a very exciting event and we hope that men and women will be part of such an event and also we hope to see more females participating in our events,” Naseef said.

“Also, MotorFest will have another go this season after the successful presentation in 2017. The Fest organised for the first time in Amman included performances by stunt rider Rok Bagoros, a young motorcyclist from Radenci, Slovenia, and the only rider among the world’s stuntman elite using a single-cylinder engine motorcycle,” he added.

Jordan Motorsports 2018 Calendar:

MELBOURNE — A ruthless Rafa Nadal preserved his creaky knees for tougher tests down the road by routing Dominican journeyman Victor Estrella Burgos 6-1, 6-1, 6-1 to sail into the second round of the Australian Open on Monday.

Playing his first competitive match since pulling out of the ATP Tour Finals with knee trouble in November, the World No. 1 showed no signs of early season rust, as he tore through the evening match at Rod Laver Arena in one hour and 34 minutes.

“Happy for the start, of course,” Nadal, who lost last year’s final in a five-set classic to Roger Federer, told reporters.

“It’s a positive start with a good result. If I do months without playing an official match, it’s always a little bit more difficult.

“But I started with positive feelings. That’s the most important thing for me now. Of course, there are things to improve.

“But the thing that I need to improve, the matches will give me those things, no? Victories are the most important thing now.”

Victory never appeared in doubt against 37-year-old Estrella Burgos who was thrilled just to win three games against the energetic Spaniard.

Nadal mowed through the first set in 23 minutes and appeared determined to keep the points short as he charged forward to win 21 of 24 points at the net.

The 31-year-old raised three match points with a huge serve and completed the rout with another that Estrella Burgos could only send long in return.

The 2009 champion’s bid for a second Australian Open title and 17th Grand Slam win will continue with a step up in class against 52nd-ranked Argentine Leonardo Mayer, who gave him a four-set test in the US Open second round on the way to winning the trophy.

Having warmly embraced Estrella Burgos after sealing the one-sided win, Nadal said he could not afford to underestimate any opponent.

“I believe that the doubts are good because when you have doubts, it’s because you aren’t too arrogant, because you have respect for your opponent, because you have respect for the game and because you don’t consider yourself unbelievably good,” he said.

Home hope Nick Kyrgios launched his Australian Open campaign with a 6-1, 6-2, 6-4 demolition of Brazilian Rogerio Dutra Silva on Monday to continue his bright start to the year.

The volatile 17th seed was on his best behaviour and let his racket do the talking as he treated his fans in the Hisense Arena to an impressive opening salvo.

Kyrgios, one of nine Australian men to start in the main draw, is shouldering his nation’s hopes of a first home men’s champion since 1976 and could not have asked for a better start.

He wrapped up the opening two sets in 51 minutes and was never seriously troubled until the third set when the 100th ranked Dutra Silva provided some stiffer resistance.

Kyrgios, who was jeered by the home crowd last year when he lost a second-round match from two sets up against Italian Andreas Seppi, will face Serbia’s Viktor Troicki next.

The 22-year-old warmed up for the Australian Open by winning the Brisbane title — his first on home soil.

AMMAN — Jordan’s U-23 football team plays Iraq on Tuesday in its third match Group C at the 3rd Asian Football Confederation (AFC) U-23 Championship currently under way in China.

Jordan is now second in the group after it lost the chance to secure qualification to the second round after two draws. It lost their 2-0 lead over Saudi Arabia, crashing down to a 2-2 draw. It also followed that by losing its 1-0 lead over Malaysia, felling to a 1-1 draw. 

Now, Jordan has to beat Iraq in its final Round 1 match as the top two teams from each group will move to the quarters. Sixteen teams are now playing in four groups.

Iraq leads group C after it held Saudi Arabia 0-0 and beat Malaysia 4-1.

In the course of preparations, Jordan beat Syria 1-0, held Thailand 2-2 and beat them 1-0. It hosted Oman beating it 2-1 before losing by the same score. This week, the squad held a training camp in Dubai where it beat China 2-0 and beat the Emirates Club 4-3 in the final phase of preparations for U-23 finals as well as the qualifiers for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. 

Jordan advanced to the AFC U-23 Championship qualifiers after finishing second behind Palestine from Group E, Oman moved from Group A, Iraq and Saudi from Group B, Qatar and Syria from Group C, Uzbekistan from Group D, Australia form Group F, North Korea from Group G, Malaysia and Thailand from Group H, South Korea and Vietnam from Group I and China and Japan from Group J.

In the inaugural AFC U-22 Championship in 2014, Jordan took third place when it beat South Korea while Iraq won the title after defeating Saudi Arabia. 

In 2016, Jordan reached the quarter-finals of the AFC U-23 Championship and failed to make it to the top four and a possible Olympic slot at the Rio Games. 

Jordan’s U-23 squad played the 1st West Asian U-23 Championship in 2015, and in 2014 the line-up represented the Kingdom at the Asian Games where it made to the quarter-finals.

This year, Jordan also qualified to the AFC U-19 Championship after the topped Group E qualifiers. Jordan had failed to qualify to the Championships in 2014 and 2016 after earlier qualifying four times and reaching the FIFA Youth World Cup in Canada in 2007. The team finished fourth in 2006, but exited the first round in 2008 and 2010 and reached the quarters in 2012. 

Jordan’s U-16 team qualified to the 2018 Asian Football Confederation (AFC) U-16 Championship after topping Group A qualifiers. Organised by the AFC, and held once every two years, the competition also serves as a qualification tournament for the FIFA U-17 World Cup, with the top four countries qualifying. Jordan failed to qualify to the 2016 AFC U-16 Asian Championship.

AMMAN — Horse jumper Sara Al Armouti became the first Jordanian to book a spot at the 3rd Youth Olympic Games taking place in Buenos Aires, Argentina, from October 6-18, according to the Jordan Olympic Committee News Service.

The 18-year-old secured her spot by winning the Amman leg of the FEI Challenge Tour held across a number of countries during 2017 to secure her place which was announced by the Royal Jordan Equestrian Federation.

“On behalf of the sporting community, I’d like to say congratulations to Sara for this wonderful achievement and we wish her well,” said Jordan Olympic Committee Secretary General Nasser Majali.

It will be the first time that a Jordanian will be represented in the equestrian event at the Youth Olympics, where jumpers from 25 countries, including Iraq, Egypt and Qatar, will take part.

Jordan hopes that more young athletes will book their places as the year progresses, with swimmer, Mohammed Al Bdour, already making a qualifying time and awaiting his confirmation.