Ronnie O’Sullivan Snooker Academy opens at Boulevard City in Riyadh
Ronnie O’Sullivan Snooker Academy opens at Boulevard City in Riyadh/node/2575290/sport
Ronnie O’Sullivan Snooker Academy opens at Boulevard City in Riyadh
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Updated 15 October 2024
Arab News
Ronnie O’Sullivan Snooker Academy opens at Boulevard City in Riyadh
The 7-time world champion attended the launch and played the first shot on the academy’s main table
Updated 15 October 2024
Arab News
RIYADH: The Ronnie O’Sullivan Snooker Academy opened in Riyadh’s Boulevard City on Monday, with the seven-time world champion on hand to play the first shot on its main table.
Widely regarded as one of the greatest snooker players of all time, O’Sullivan was joined at the launch by leading figures from the Saudi sports sector, including Faisal Bafarat, CEO of the Kingdom’s General Entertainment Authority, and Nasser Al-Shammari, president of the Saudi Snooker Federation, who oversaw the inauguration ceremony.
O’Sullivan performed the inaugural shot at the academy’s main table. (Supplied)
The academy’s founders say it will offer snooker enthusiasts a dedicated space in which they can hone their skills and compete in local and international tournaments, with the wider aim of boosting the profile and development of the sport in the Kingdom.
The opening of the academy is in line with the goals of Saudi Vision 2030 relating to the development of sport and youth development in the Kingdom, by helping to provide local players with the coaching and experience that can prepare them to compete on a global stage.
Kuldeep helps India bowl out Pakistan for 146 in Asia Cup final
Defending champions India and Pakistan are playing a final in the Asia Cup for the first time in the tournament’s 41-year history
The two neighbors came into the title clash after previous two clashes that witnessed political posturing and on-field aggression
Updated 55 min ago
AFP
DUBAI: India spinner Kuldeep Yadav took four wickets to trigger a batting collapse and bowl Pakistan out for 146 in the Asia Cup final with no handshakes between the sides again on Sunday.
The two neighbors came into the title clash with tensions high from their previous two clashes in the competition, which witnessed political posturing and aggressive on-field behavior at the same venue in Dubai.
Pace bowler Jasprit Bumrah raised the heat when he bowled Haris Rauf for six and made a gesture similar to the one the Pakistan bowler had done to the crowd in the previous meeting between the two teams.
Put in to bat after no handshakes in the toss, Pakistan started strongly as openers Sahibzada Farhan, who made 57, and Fakhar Zaman, who made 46, put on 84 runs but the team slipped from 113-1 to be bowled out in 19.1 overs.
Farhan fell after his second fifty in this edition of the regional tournament played in the T20 format after the batter attempted a second successive six off spinner Varun Chakravarthy.
Zaman took charge and along with Saim Ayub kept up the attack with regular boundaries until Kuldeep struck in the 13th over.
Ayub fell to Kuldeep’s left-arm wrist spin as Pakistan lost six wickets for 21 runs.
Indian players celebrates the wicket Pakistan's Shaheen Shah Afridi of during the Asia Cup cricket final between India and Pakistan at Dubai International Cricket Stadium, United Arab Emirates, Sunday, Sept. 28, 2025. (AP)
Zaman fell short of his fifty and Kuldeep struck with three wickets in the 17th over, including skipper Salman Agha for eight.
Bumrah got Rauf and then Mohammad Nawaz to wrap up the innings in 19.1 overs.
Defending champions India and Pakistan are playing a final in the Asia Cup for the first time in the tournament’s 41-year history.
India and Pakistan met earlier in the competition for the first time after deadly fighting between the nuclear-armed neighbors, who have not played a bilateral series in over a decade.
The two only meet in multi-nation tournaments at neutral venues as part of a compromise deal.
India comfortably won both their games in the tournament, but in the Super Four clash Farhan mimicked a gun celebration after his half-century.
Rauf made gestures appearing to mock India’s military action during the four-day border conflict in May that left more than 70 people dead.
In the group match, India skipper Suryakumar Yadav had refused to shake hands with Pakistan counterpart Agha and the two teams kept up the stance in the second match.
The Asia Cup is widely seen as a dress rehearsal for the T20 World Cup to be co-hosted by India and Sri Lanka in February-March of next year.
European Champions League winners Paris Saint-Germain will play their first ever Intercontinental Cup final in Doha, Qatar, on December 17, FIFA announced on Sunday
Their opponents will only be determined four days earlier in the final playoff, called the Challenger Cup
Updated 28 September 2025
AFP
PARIS: European Champions League winners Paris Saint-Germain will play their first ever Intercontinental Cup final in Doha, Qatar, on December 17, FIFA announced on Sunday.
Their opponents will only be determined four days earlier in the final playoff, called the Challenger Cup.
This will pit Egyptian club Pyramids, the African champions, against the winner of the match between Central American champions Cruz Azul from Mexico and the future winner of the Copa Libertadores.
The South American tournament is currently in the semifinal stage and includes two Brazilian sides.
Palmeiras are up against LDU Quito of Ecuador while Flamengo take on the Argentinian side Racing.
The Copa Libertadores final takes place on November 29.
From 1960 to 2004, the Intercontinental Cup pitted the champions of Europe and South America against each other.
In 2005, it was renamed the Club World Cup to include other continental champions but that competition was relaunched this year as a quadrennial tournament featuring 32 teams with Chelsea as the inaugural winners of the new format.
The Intercontinental Cup was itself relaunched in its new form last year when Real Madrid beat Mexican club Pachuca.
Alcaraz powers into Japan Open semis, Rune crashes out
“These kind of matches help to keep my confidence really, really high. I played some great tennis,” Alcaraz said
Updated 28 September 2025
Reuters
TOKYO:World number one Carlos Alcaraz stormed into the semifinals of the Japan Open on Sunday with a commanding 6-2 6-4 win over American Brandon Nakashima, while Danish third seed Holger Rune was sent packing by Jenson Brooksby.
Alcaraz, who overcame an injury scare in his straight-sets win over Argentine Sebastian Baez in Thursday’s opener, showed scintillating form to dispatch Nakashima for his 65th win of the season, thumping 39 winners in the one-hour 20-minute contest.
The 22-year-old Spaniard, fresh from reclaiming top spot in the world rankings after clinching his sixth Grand Slam title at the US Open earlier this month, next faces Norwegian fourth seed Casper Ruud.
Earlier, Ruud blazed past Australian qualifier Aleksandar Vukic with a clinical 6-3 6-2 win.
“These kind of matches help to keep my confidence really, really high. I played some great tennis,” Alcaraz said.
“It’s great to go through, to play another semifinal. It’s special, because it’s the first time I’m playing in Japan, here in Tokyo. To reach the semis in my first appearance is something great.”
The biggest upset of the day came in Rune’s 6-3 6-3 loss to American Brooksby, ranked 86th in the world.
“Once I get on a roll from a couple of matches, I just think I’m really able to get into my zone. I think that’s one of my big strengths,” Brooksby said.
“I thought I had a pretty good plan on him coming out here. I had never played him before, but I think that’s good maybe, someone who hasn’t faced my unique skills, I guess.
“I had a good rhythm from the first two matches and thought I was playing really good tennis, and I think I just stayed a little bit more consistent today.”
Wimbledon semifinalist Taylor Fritz overcame a second-set blip to beat Sebastian Korda 6-3 6-7(5) 6-3 in an all-American clash.
Second seed Fritz, who is set to climb to fourth in the ATP rankings on Monday, overtaking Novak Djokovic, will take on Brooksby in the semis.
Sharjah Self-Defence Club leads Round 7 of Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Jiu-Jitsu Championship
In youth division competition at Zayed Sports Complex in Fujairah, Palms Sports were second and Al Ain Club third
Updated 28 September 2025
Arab News
FUJAIRAH: The seventh round of the Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Jiu-Jitsu Championship got underway at Zayed Sports Complex in Fujairah on Saturday with U-12, U-14 and U-16 athletes competing in the highly anticipated No-Gi category.
By the end of the day, Sharjah Self-Defence Club had maintained its lead in the overall rankings, followed by Palms Sports in second and Al-Ain Club in third.
Mohammed bin Dalmouj Al-Dhaheri, board member of the UAE Jiu-Jitsu Federation, praised the UAE’s emerging jiu-jitsu talent, saying that Round 7 shows significant progress in the younger divisions.
“The great performances we witnessed today offer hope for the future, demonstrating that we have a strong foundation capable of competing regionally and internationally,” he said.
“Today’s event in Fujairah went beyond sport, it became a national celebration, bringing together athletes and families under one roof. The Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Jiu-Jitsu Championship has been deeply ingrained in our social fabric, imparting noble values like discipline, tenacity, and respect while bringing communities together across the emirates,” Al-Dhaheri added.
The competition continues on Sunday with the U-18, Adults, and Masters categories, with the ultimate No-Gi winner of the season to be determined.
Al-Ittihad sack coach Laurent Blanc after 2-0 loss to Al-Nassr
Updated 28 September 2025
Reuters
Al-Ittihad have sacked manager Laurent Blanc, the Saudi Pro League club said on Saturday following their 2-0 defeat against Al-Nassr a day earlier.
“Al-Ittihad announces the termination of its contractual relationship with the first team’s head coach Mr.Laurent Blanc and his coaching staff,” the club said on X.
Al-Ittihad added that they were also looking for “new technical staff that matches the club’s ambitions.”
Blanc took charge of Al-Ittihad in July last year and led the team to a domestic double, winning both the league title and the King’s Cup.
However, the team began the new season by exiting the Saudi Super Cup in the semifinals following a loss to Al-Nassr, before suffering a second defeat to the Riyadh-based side in the league on Friday. They are third in the standings, three points behind Al-Nassr.
