Momota has surgery, recovery delayed
Tokyo: Injured Japanese badminton world number one Kento Momota had surgery on a bone near his eye on Saturday — dashing hopes of an early recovery, local media reported. The 25-year-old Japanese — hurt in a Malaysian car crash earlier this year — was diagnosed with an orbital floor fracture after he said he suffered double vision during practice, Japanese public broadcaster NHK reported. Doctors anticipated the bone would take three months to fully heal, the station said, adding he had already been discharged following the surgery. Momota had prepared to return to action at the March 11 All England Championships but would miss the competition, NHK said.
USA, Canada book Olympic berths
Leicester: The United States will try to follow their women's World Cup triumph with Olympic Gold after punching their ticket to the Tokyo Games on Friday with a 4-0 victory over Mexico. Samantha Mewis scored twice and Rose Lavelle and Christen Press added a goal apiece as the United States secured one of two Olympic berths on offer in the semi-finals of the CONCACAF regional qualifier at Dignity Sports Park in Carson, California. They'll face Canada in today's tournament final, but the main objective has been achieved by both teams, with Canada securing their Tokyo berth with a 1-0 win over Costa Rica in the first semi-final.
Bologna hit roma’s top four hopes
Rome: Roma's chances of qualifying for next season's Champions League suffered another blow on Friday as a 3-2 home defeat by Bologna extended the capital club's winless streak to three Serie A games. Paulo Fonseca's fifth-placed side remain level on points with fourth-placed Atalanta, who visit Fiorentina, before the two teams meet in Bergamo next weekend. “At this moment, we are too anxious, so I must consider what I can do to change this situation,” Roma boss Fonseca told Sky Sport Italia. “We must work to change this. It's not overly dramatic, it might all seem negative right now, but we just need courage.”
Sathiyan to play in Japan's TT league
New Delhi: G Sathiyan on Saturday became the first Indian to sign for Japan's premier table tennis league — the T League. Sathiyan will be representing Okayama Rivets in the league, which began in 2018 and is the first ever professional league in Japan. The switch to Japan for India's top-ranked paddler comes after two fruitful seasons in Germany. Sathiyan had won the German Cup with his club ASV Grunwettersbasch last month. "I made the decision to move out of Germany as Japan is much better for practice and the level is higher than Europe," Sathiyan said.
Aus presented with ICC C'ship trophy
Melbourne: Australia were on Saturday presented with the ICC Women's Championship trophy, which they have retained by taking a winning lead in the eight-team ODI competition played from 2017 to 2020. Meg Lanning's team has now won both editions after ensuring a winning lead in the 2017-2020 championship."It's pleasing to have won the ICC Women's Championship for the second time and of course, to have secured our spot at the ICC Women's Cricket World Cup 2021 in New Zealand next year. It's going to be a tightly fought tournament and one we're looking forward to," said Lanning. The ICC Women's Championship provides hosts New Zealand and four other top teams direct passage to the ICC Women's World Cup 2021 with other teams still having a chance to qualify through the qualifiers.