Jordanians celebrate historic World Cup qualification
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Khaleej Times
21 hours ago
- Khaleej Times
India hit back against England on another remarkable day in 5th Test
India roared back into contention on an exhilarating day two of the final Test on Friday as their seamers restricted England to a 23-run lead after the hosts had threatened to run away with a match that the tourists need to win to square the series. After mopping up India's brittle tail in less than 30 minutes in the morning, openers Zac Crawley and Ben Duckett raced to 92-0 in 12 overs in a blistering return of Bazball. However, continuing the back and forth theme of the entire series, India responded as their bowlers ran in relentlessly to peg England back to 247. Opener Yashasvi Jaiswal then scored quickly in a potentially awkward last 90 minutes, ending unbeaten on 51 with India closing on 75-2, 52 runs ahead to leave the pivotal match fascinatingly poised. Another fabulously undulating day began with India resuming at 204-6 but soon skittled for 224 as pace bowler Gus Atkinson took five wickets in his first Test since May. It was an all-too-familiar collapse by the tourists this summer as Karun Nair fell lbw for 57 and Washington Sundar was caught for 26. Atkinson then bowled Mohammed Siraj and had Prasidh Krishna caught behind, both for ducks, to finish with 5-33. England set about their reply in their usual, swashbuckling fashion, exemplified by Duckett's extraordinary "reverse hook" for six off Akash Deep. They reached 50 in seven overs - the fastest 50 opening partnership England have ever managed in a Test - but fell just short of the 100 as Duckett was caught behind reversing for 43. They were 109-1 at lunch and England looked poised to take command but India, as they have all summer, refused to buckle as Crawley (64) and Ollie Pope (22) quickly departed. Joe Root brought his usual calm to proceedings until Siraj nipped one back at him for an lbw on 29, with Jacob Bethell going the same way soon after. Krishna finished off the session in style by having Jamie Smith brilliantly caught in the slips for eight by KL Rahul then getting Jamie Overton lbw for nought and followed up with the wicket of Atkinson to finish with 4-62. Harry Brook had a late flurry either side of a rain delay before becoming Siraj's fourth victim when bowled for 53 as England, with injured Chris Woakes absent, were all out for 247. India's openers quickly erased that and pushed on well beyond, with Jaiswal looking particularly enterprising en route to a quickfire 51 — though he was badly dropped in the deep on 40. Rahul departed tamely for seven off Josh Tongue, and Sai Sudharsan followed, lbw to Atkinson for 11, leaving Deep not out four. With good weather forecast for Saturday another Oval full house will turn up in expectation of more fireworks and what has been one of the most entertaining series for years still in the balance.
Khaleej Times
a day ago
- Khaleej Times
UAE: Abu Dhabi to host Open Masters Games in February; residents' fees at Dh275
UAE residents aged 30 and above can now sign up for the Open Masters Games Abu Dhabi 2026, the first event of its kind in the Middle East, taking place from February 6 to February 16. The event features 33 various sports and is expected to gather more than 25,000 participants from over 100 nationalities. Competitions will be hosted across 18 major venues, including Zayed Sports City, Hudayriyat Island, Al Ain Adventure, ADNEC, and Abu Dhabi Falconers Club. Registration is now open via the Open Masters Games official website, with entry fees set at Dh275 for UAE residents and Dh550 for international athletes. Participants aged 25 years old and above can join in swimming, while rugby is only open to those aged 27+. Special rates of Dh100 are available for People of Determination and senior citizens. Registration will close on December 31. Spots per sport category are limited, organisers clarified. A celebration of sport 'We're always on the lookout for new experiences for our team,' said Perry Gardiner, co-founder of Calibre Masters swimming club. 'With swimmers from across the UAE and visitors from abroad, it's shaping up to be a fun and competitive event.' The Calibre Masters Swimming Club, based in Dubai, offers swimming classes for adults and has built a community of competitive swimmers. 'We'd love to see as many of our swimmers as possible enjoying the experience, swimming fast and making the most of it,' Gardiner added. 'To have the chance to do all of that on such a big stage is a real privilege.' Andy Fordham, Project Director at Zayed Sports City, who will compete in the cycling events of the games, told Khaleej Times: 'With 33 sports and more than 20,000 participants, I expect a true celebration of sport, diversity, and resilience across generations.' The New Zealand director saw the games happening in his home country in 2017 and is now looking forward to participating and competing. 'I happened to be in my home country, New Zealand, during the 2017 Games held in Auckland. Although I wasn't a participant back then, I vividly remember the energy of it. Years later, I finally get to experience it as an athlete,' said Fordham. 'As for preparations, I've been balancing my training around work, focusing on both endurance riding and building up stamina for race day.' For those willing to contribute to organising the games, volunteer applications are open via the Emirates Foundation, with opportunities in logistics, athlete support, and hospitality. Roles are available for students, professionals, and community volunteers. 'Volunteering in the Open Masters Games Abu Dhabi 2026 is more than just a contribution of time — it is a message of passion and belonging,' said Ahmed Taleb Al Shamsi, CEO of Emirates Foundation. 'The unity of volunteers embodies the spirit of collaboration toward promoting a healthy lifestyle and encouraging movement across all age groups.'
Khaleej Times
a day ago
- Khaleej Times
Too much too young?: Swimming's dilemma over 12-year-old schoolgirl
Swimming is a sport well used to talented teenagers, but Yu Zidi's participation aged 12 at the world championships has sparked debate about how young is too young. The prodigious Chinese schoolgirl is not just making up the numbers at the event in Singapore this week. Yu qualified for Monday's final of the 200m individual medley and came fourth, missing out on a remarkable medal by just 0.06sec in what is not considered her strongest event. The race was won by Canada's Summer McIntosh — she competed at the Tokyo Olympics as a 14-year-old and last summer in Paris won three golds at age 17. Yu was at it again on Wednesday in Singapore, racing alongside comparative veteran McIntosh to reach the finals of the 200m butterfly. Yu, who turns 13 in October, will also race in the 400m medley later this week. Like a fish in water The Chinese prodigy, who discovered swimming aged six as a way to cool off in China's roasting summers, has drawn historical comparisons to Inge Sorensen. At 12, the Dane was the youngest-ever winner of an Olympic swimming medal after her bronze at the Berlin Games of 1936. More recently, there was Bahrain's Alzain Tareq, who was 10 when she competed at the swimming world championships in Kazan, Russia, in 2015. Unlike Yu, however, she never came close to a medal. Asked this week if she was a 'genius', Yu replied: 'No, not really. It's all the result of hard training.' While Yu's performances have been impressive and could well yield a medal, not everyone thinks she should be competing in Singapore. Some in the sport have raised questions about the impact on Yu mentally and physically of high-level training and competing at an age when she is still developing as a person. Under current World Aquatics rules, the minimum age is 14 but younger swimmers can compete at the championships if — like Yu — they are fast enough. Christian Hansmann, sports director of German swimming, called her participation in Singapore 'questionable'. 'Putting a girl of 12 in front of a world championship crowd of 5,000 spectators, with the high pressure from the media and the coaches, is far too early in my opinion,' said Hansmann, who has children of a similar age. French swimmer Lilou Ressencourt admitted it '[upsets me] to be beaten by a girl 10 years younger than me', and said she was surprised by how fast Yu is at such a young age. Putting a girl of 12 in front of a world championship crowd of 5,000 spectators, with the high pressure from the media and the coaches, is far too early in my opinion" Christian Hansmann, Sports Director Of German Swimming She too fears for Yu's physical and mental well-being. 'I'm 22 and handling world championships, even French championships, can be difficult,' Ressencourt told AFP. 'I tell myself that at 12, you have a heavy responsibility... it's not normal at 12 to have that kind of pressure.' Yu's presence in Singapore could force a rethink of the rules at World Aquatics, the sport's governing body. Executive director Brent Nowicki admitted they had been surprised that someone as young as Yu had been fast enough to qualify. Nowicki said World Aquatics 'feel quite good about where we are with our safeguarding approach in our sport', but admitted that Yu could force a re-evaluation of its rules. 'She's great. I mean, there's a big future there for her. Hopefully, there could be good things that could happen out of this, and it could be great,' he said. But he added: 'Obviously we have to make sure that that's what it is, right? We don't want to tip that balance and go the other way, and we have to be careful about that.' Finding balance Many other sports have wrestled with the same age issue. In 2022, for instance, ice skating's governing body voted to raise the minimum age for senior competition from 15 to 17, months after an Olympics drug scandal involving Russian teenager Kamila Valieva. Katarina Witt, who was 18 when she won Olympic skating gold at the 1984 Sarajevo Games for East Germany, said the change was 'primarily protecting the female athletes from their sometimes over-ambitious managers'.
