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Formula One leader Kimi Antonelli said he felt stronger and more in control as he seeks to raise the bar with every race in his second season in the sport.The 19-year-old Mercedes driver leads teammate
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Skipper Shubman Gill continued with his good knack of making a truckload of runs at Narendra Modi Stadium – this time by smashing a serene 86 to guide Gujarat Titans (GT) to a comfortable five-wicket
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Russia’s Andrey Rublev reacts after winning his Barcelona Open semi-final against Serbia’s Hamad Medjedovic Saturday. (AFP) Russian Andrey Rublev fought back to beat Hamad Medjedovic 3-6 6-2 6-2 in the Barcelona Open Saturday to reach his first final of the season where he will play Arthur Fils. Medjedovic, who came through the qualifiers, had stunned third seed Alex de Minaur in the last 16 and the Serbian came out swinging in the opening set, saving five break points to put one foot in the final. But Rublev recovered in the second set, improving on his second serve to level the match before dominating the third set on the back of a superb first serve as Medjedovic’s unforced error count climbed. After three semi-final exits this year, former world number five Rublev will play his first final since he lost in Hamburg 11 months ago. “Of course, I would like to (win the title). If it happens, it happens. If it doesn’t happen, we keep working, what can I do? Not much to say,” he said in an on-court interview. Fils was also forced to make a comeback as he beat Spanish teenager Rafael Jodar 3-6 6-3 6-2 to register a landmark 100th victory on the ATP Tour. Jodar, who won the Grand Prix Hassan II title this month, was on an eight-match win streak but he could not stop Fils from reaching his second final of the year. Fils lost to Carlos Alcaraz in the Doha final in February. Related Story
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Flavio Cobolli ended top seed Alexander Zverev's Munich Open title defence Saturday as the Italian breezed past the world number three in straight sets to book his place in the final against Ben Shelton.Fourth seed Cobolli downed the home favourite 6-3, 6-3 in just under 70 minutes in their semi-final meeting.The 23-year-old's blistering performance put paid to Zverev's hopes for a record fourth title on the red dirt in Munich.'It was one of my best matches ever against one of my biggest friends on tour,' Cobolli said.'I'm a little bit shy when I play with a big player, but today I played one of my best performances and I'm really happy.'Cobolli edged ahead of Zverev when he broke the German to love in the fourth game of the first set.Zverev struggled to make inroads on Cobolli's serve over the course of the match, and when the world number 16 pounced on his opponent's first service game of the second set the writing was on the wall for Zverev.Two punishing crosscourt forehands followed up by a crisp volley to finish off game seven secured Cobolli a double break and gave him the chance to serve for the match.But Zverev hit back immediately as he secured his first break points of the encounter, converting at the second time of asking to halt his opponent.A brilliant forehand on the run handed Cobolli match point in the next game and when Zverev framed a deep return the match was decided.Cobolli advances to his second final of the season, where he will look to add to the title he picked up in Acapulco in February.Shelton, who later Saturday beat qualifier Alex Molcan 6-3, 6-4, will be the man standing in Cobolli's way as the American seeks to go one better than last year when he lost the Munich title match to Zverev.Second seed Shelton broke in the sixth game of the first set to get his nose in front against the 166th-ranked Slovakian and then secured a crucial second break of the match to go 5-4 up in the final set.The 23-year-old was on form with his serve as Molcan managed to engineer just one break point across the two sets, which Shelton saved.
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Blackburn Rovers v Coventry City - Ewood Park, Blackburn, Britain - April 17, 2026 Coventry City celebrate after winning promotion to the Premier League Action. Reuters Coventry secured promotion to the Premier League on Friday as the Championship leaders' 1-1 draw against Blackburn ended their 25-year exile from the top-flight.Frank Lampard's side needed a point from their trip to Ewood Park to be certain of automatic promotion.They did it the hard way, trailing to Ryoya Morishita's deflected 54th-minute strike before Bobby Thomas headed the priceless equaliser in the 84th minute.Having led the Championship table for much of the season, the Sky Blues have wrapped up their return to English football's elite with three games to spare."It was an incredible moment. This is what it's about," a tearful Lampard said in an emotional post-match interview."Coming here and getting a point at this stage isn't easy. We had to see it out and we didn't know whether to attack again."Doing this after 25 years? Wow! Wow!"Backed by 7,500 raucous fans crammed into the Darwen End, Coventry were below their best for long periods of a nervous display.But their performance will quickly be forgotten, replaced by life-long memories of the promotion party that followed Thomas' glancing header from Victor Torp's free-kick.Supporters wept tears of joy when the final whistle announced their ascent to the Premier League."Amazing, amazing. I couldn't believe it when it went in," Thomas said. "It's been a hell of a season. I feel like we deserve it."Now Lampard's men can set their sights on winning the Championship title, with second-placed Ipswich 11 points behind with five matches to play."This is a serious, serious football club. I grew up with them as a top flight club but I didn't realise," Lampard said."To go and get promotion automatically as a non-parachute team with three games to go. These boys have managed to achieve something special and unique."Fittingly, Coventry's previous promotion to the top-flight in 1967 was also sealed at Blackburn when Rovers drew with Bolton.That was the start of a 34-year spell in the top tier before relegation in 2001 sparked a steep decline.Coventry plunged into the fourth tier for one season in 2017-18 and were even forced to play their home games in Northampton and Birmingham for three seasons due to a bitter legal battle between the club and their stadium's owners.The 1987 FA Cup winners' rise back to prominence was initially piloted by Mark Robins, whose second spell in charge brought promotion from League Two and League One.Losing the 2023 Championship play-off final against Luton stalled Coventry's momentum and eventually led to Robins' dismissal in 2024.Hiring former England star Lampard as Robins' replacement proved an inspired move as he revived his career following sackings by Chelsea and Everton.Lampard led Coventry away from the relegation zone in his first season before losing to Sunderland in the play-off semi-finals.Fuelled by the pain of that near-miss, Coventry embarked on a relentless march to promotion.A 7-1 demolition of QPR and a 5-3 win at Lampard's former club Derby in August established Coventry as the Championship's dominant force.Jack Rudoni's assured presence in midfield, complemented by the goals of Haji Wright, Ellis Simms and Brandon Thomas-Asante, kept Coventry top of the pile as the promotion dream came true.The Sky Blues' success has also reinvigorated the midlands city, according to Coventry's Lord Mayor Rachel Lancaster."It's huge for Coventry football club and the fans, but for Coventry itself as a city, this has been massive," she said.Coventry owner Doug King added: "The fans have been starved of it for a long time and you can feel it."Twenty-five years is a huge amount of time. If you don't bounce back you feel like it's never going to happen."Getting out of this league is very difficult but we did it. We got the whole city together. I'm super proud of everybody." Related Story
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Kazakhstan’s Elena Rybakina returns the ball to Russia’s Mirra Andreeva (not in picture) during their semifinal match at the Women's Tennis Grand Prix WTA tournament in Stuttgart, southwestern Germany, on April 18, 2026. (AFP) Australian Open champion Elena Rybakina surged to a 7-5, 6-1 victory over teenager Mirra Andreeva Saturday and will face Karolina Muchova for the title in Stuttgart.Rybakina shook off any lingering fatigue from a late finish in Friday's quarter-final win over Leylah Fernandez to reach her third final of the year.Top seed Rybakina snatched a tight opening set by breaking Andreeva, who was 7-0 on clay this season and won in Linz last week, with the Russian serving to force a tie-break.She carried over that momentum to sweep into a 5-0 lead in the second set before closing out victory in 77 minutes."First set, we were going pretty even," said Rybakina. "I had some opportunities to go up but didn't take them. But I'm happy that in these important moments, my serve worked and I stayed aggressive."Then in the second set being up, I was more free to hit, to step in, to play even more aggressive."So I'm pretty happy with the performance. It was really solid. And I guess the three-hour match yesterday, it did help me today."Rybakina, who finished runner-up at Indian Wells last month, will have a chance on Sunday to regain the title she won two years ago and drive off with a second Porsche sports car -- the coveted prize awarded to the champion in Stuttgart.Muchova edged Elina Svitolina 6-4, 2-6, 6-4 earlier in the day to book her spot in the final.The world number 12 will play the first 500-level final of her career as she goes in search of a third WTA title.Muchova, the 2023 Roland Garros runner-up, got the edge over Svitolina to claim the opening set as she converted both break points against the Ukrainian.The seventh seed's serve deserted her somewhat in the next frame as Svitolina hit back by breaking Muchova three times to claim the second set.The crucial moment in the decider came in the ninth game as Muchova pounced on Svitolina's service game to get her nose in front at 5-4.That sole break was enough as Muchova then served out the match to love, sealing the deal with an ace out wide.
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The Qatar Motor and Motorcycle Federation organised Survival 1, the opening round of the 2026 Qatar Off Road Championship, in the challenging dunes of Sealine. The event featured a strong entry list of 42 competitors representing Qatar and several other nationalities, delivering an exciting and competitive start to the season.The demanding terrain tested both skill and endurance, producing intense competition across all classes. In Class 1, Ethan Lane secured first place with an outstanding performance and was also the Challenger category winner in his class. Alex Mcinnes finished in second place, followed by Michael Anderson in third. The Veteran Class victory went to Gregely Kis. In Class 2, Mansour al-Suwaidi claimed first place after a strong and consistent drive. Khalifa al-Bastaki secured second place and was also the Challenger category winner in his class, while Ali al-Marzouqi completed the podium in third position. The Veteran Class 2 was won by Mohammed al-Shamsi. The trophies were presented to the winners by Amro al-Hamad, Executive Director of QMMF, alongside Pedro Almeida, Clerk of the Course. The championship continues next week with Round 2 of the Qatar Off Road Championship, Baja 1 for cars and motorcycles, scheduled to take place on 25 April 2026. Related Story
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Napoli could concede the Serie A title to Inter Milan as soon as next week after falling to a 2-0 home defeat at the hands of Lazio. With five matches remaining in their respective league seasons the reigning champions trail Inter by 12 points following a poor display in Naples.Matteo Cancellieri's early tap-in set the tone at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona, and Toma Basic made sure of a fine win for ninth-placed Lazio with another simple finish in the 57th minute.Lazio's performance was a good sign for their Italian Cup semi-final against Atalanta, which is delicately poised at 2-2 ahead of Wednesday's second leg in Bergamo. But it leaves Napoli counting the days until they officially concede the Scudetto, as if they fail to beat Cremonese and Inter win at Torino next weekend, the Scudetto will return north to Milan.Napoli could have even lost by more as in the 31st minute Vanja Milinkovic-Savic got his hands to an uncharacteristically poor penalty from Mattia Zaccagni, who then smashed over the rebound after slipping to the deck.That was the first time Zaccagni had failed to score from the penalty spot in Serie A but it made no difference to the final result. Napoli's title defence might effectively be over but Champions League qualification is still on the cards thanks to an eight-point lead on fifth-placed Como.Roma, in sixth, host Atalanta in the day's late match and can move to within six points of Napoli with a win. However Napoli have the better of the head-to-head record which decides the positions of teams who finish the season level on points.Roma also have problems of their own, with open conflict between coach Gian Piero Gasperini and Claudio Ranieri, who is a senior advisor to the Friedkin family, the capital club's billionaire American owners.Gasperini abandoned Friday's pre-match press conference on the verge of tears after speaking about Atalanta president Antonio Percassi, with whom Gasperini had a strong working relationship during his hugely successful nine years in Bergamo.Italian media have widely report one of Gasperini or Ranieri will be out the door come the end of the season, hardly the ideal backdrop as Roma head into a key clash against Gasperini's old club.Gasperini said his successes at Atalanta, which include winning the Europa League in 2024, were down to a 'club which was in sync with the coach', a clear hint he didn't believe he has that at Roma.
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Hoffenheim’s Andrej Kramaric (second right) celebrates after scoring a penalty against Borussia Dortmund. (AFP) Bayern Munich edged closer to the Bundesliga title after Borussia Dortmund lost 2-1 at Hoffenheim, while pioneering Union Berlin coach Marie-Louise Eta was beaten on her debut.Second-placed Dortmund’s defeat leaves Bayern, who host Stuttgart Sunday, 12 points clear with a game in hand. The defending champions need just a point to claim their 35th German title. Club record goalscorer Andrej Kramaric converted two penalties, bringing his career total to 156 for Hoffenheim, to help the hosts move past Bayer Leverkusen into fifth spot. Unlike Dortmund, who have all but locked up second place, Hoffenheim still have plenty to play for as they chase a Champions League berth, and dominated proceedings in the opening half. Just before the break, Dortmund defender Niklas Suele fell awkwardly in the box and handled the ball. Kramaric converted the penalty as Suele was helped from the pitch with a knee injury. Substitute Serhou Guirassy pulled one back for the visitors but Hoffenheim were awarded another penalty in stoppage time, which Kramaric once more dispatched to grab victory. Dortmund have now lost their past two matches, having previously suffered just two defeats across the entire campaign. New Union coach Eta, the first female manager of a men’s team in the top five European leagues, suffered a setback on her debut, going down 2-1 at home to relegation battlers Wolfsburg. Appointed on an interim basis until the end of the season, Eta received a rapturous response from the home crowd when her name was announced pre-match. Union were quickly on the back foot when Patrick Wimmer scored after 11 minutes. Dzenan Pejcinovic added another just after the break to help Wolfsburg move two points behind St Pauli in the relegation play-off spot and six from safety. Union’s Oliver Burke scored a late goal but despite the defeat, the Berliners remain six points ahead of the relegation play-off spot with four games left to play this season. Leverkusen dropped to sixth after losing 2-1 at home against mid-table Augsburg. Patrik Schick headed Leverkusen in front after 12 minutes but Augsburg pegged them back just three minutes later when Fabian Rieder’s shot took a deflection off Jarell Quansah and went in. Rieder converted a penalty in the seventh minute of stoppage time to deal a hammer blow to Leverkusen’s top-four hopes. Elsewhere, Werder Bremen picked up crucial points in the battle to beat the drop, winning 3-1 at home to northern rivals Hamburg, who finished the match with nine men. Jens Stage bagged a double either side of a Robert Glatzel strike. Cameron Puertas added a late goal to help Bremen move five points clear of the bottom three and level with Hamburg. RB Leipzig moved five points clear of fifth spot with a 3-1 win at Eintracht Frankfurt. Related Story
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c9f6bdaa-3c32-421d-8302-8125c9162aa1 HE Ambassador of the Republic of Korea to the State of Qatar Yun Hyunsoo and HE Ambassador of Japan to the State of Qatar Naoto Hisajima visited the ice rink at the Ali Bin Hamad Al Attiyah Arena, located at Al Sadd Sports Club, to review the facilities dedicated to ice sports. The recent visit came in response to an invitation from the Qatar Winter Sports Committee, as part of its ongoing efforts to develop and promote ice sports in the country and enhance their presence at both regional and international levels. The ambassadors were received by Hassan Hissam al-Hebabi, Secretary-General of the Committee, who accompanied them on a tour of the venue. The visit provided an overview of the rink’s capabilities, including its modern equipment and advanced infrastructure, reflecting Qatar’s progress in supporting various sports, including winter disciplines. During the visit, the two ambassadors took part in a friendly curling match alongside members and staff of their respective diplomatic missions, in an atmosphere marked by sportsmanship and reflecting the strong relations between their countries and Qatar. The Qatar Winter Sports Committee exchanged commemorative gifts with the ambassadors in appreciation of their interest in ice sports, in the presence of the accompanying delegations, in a gesture that reflects mutual respect and cooperation. On this occasion, Hassan Hissam al-Hebabi expressed his appreciation to the ambassadors for their visit, noting that ice sports in Qatar are entering a phase of notable infrastructure expansion, which will further strengthen their standing and support the future development of winter sports in the country. For his part, the Ambassador of the Republic of Korea expressed his gratitude for the warm welcome, praising the advanced standard of the ice rink and its modern facilities, and noting that it represents a model of developed sports infrastructure reflecting the comprehensive progress witnessed by the sports sector in Qatar.
