Author: The Nation

By Olalekan Okusan

Women’s singles defending champion Fatimo Bello of G20 retained her title as Rilwan Akanbi of Atinuke Table Tennis Club emerge men’s singles champion at the 2021 Nigeria Table Tennis Federation (NTTF) National Championships.

Akanbi, whose inconsistency has dropped his national rating worked his way to the top of the men’s singles after edging out title contenders like Amadi Omeh and Azeez Solanke before finally ending the unbeaten run of Taiwo Mati in the final.

The former Asoju Oba champion, Akanbi , had to rally from 2-0 down to beat Ondo’s Mati 4-3 (7-11, 8-11, 11-6, 11-6, 11-9, 8-11, 11-9) to the admiration of the fans at the Molade Okoya-Thomas Hall of Teslim Balogun Stadium.

A delighted Akanbi described his win as a reward of hardwork: “I am so delighted to win this title because nobody considered me as a title contender having lost form in the last three years.”

Meanwhile,  Bello  continued her reign as the best female player in the country with a convincing 4-1 (15-13, 11-9, 8-11, 11-5, 11-1) win over Bose Odusanya in the women’s singles final.

Ondo and G20 won the highest number of medals in the 12 events in the five-day championships with 18 states and 18 clubs made up of 300 players.

Two-time Olympic wrestling medallist Sushil Kumar was arrested on Sunday, Indian police said, after a week-long manhunt over the alleged murder of a fellow athlete.

Kumar went into hiding after 24-year-old Sagar Dhankad was badly beaten during a brawl between two groups of wrestlers at a stadium in the capital New Delhi on May 4.

Dhankad, a former junior champion who was training as a senior wrestler, later died in hospital.

Kumar was arrested yesterday in northwest Delhi with another suspect, Delhi police said.

“They were switching their location when they were arrested,” the police officer told AFP.

Police had offered a reward of 100,000 rupees ($1,370) for information leading to the arrest of the 37-year-old star after two of Dhankad’s associates injured in the fight named Kumar as one of the attackers.

But Kumar, via his lawyers, had said he was innocent and accused police of a biased investigation.

Kumar is viewed as one of India’s finest sportsmen and the only to win two individual Olympic medals – a freestyle wrestling silver at the 2012 London Games and a bronze at the Beijing Olympics four years earlier.

He represented India in international competitions and won three Commonwealth Games golds and one gold at the World Wrestling Championships in Moscow in 2010.He was awarded India’s highest honour for athletes in 2009.

The Total CAF Super Cup in Doha, Qatar on Friday night, 28 May 2021 will be played in a biologically safe environment (bio-bubble).

The match will pit the winners of the 2019-2020 Total CAF Champions League, Al Ahly (Egypt), against the winners of the 2019-2020 Total CAF Confederation Cup, Renaissance Sportive de Berkane (Morocco) at Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium, Doha.

This means that both teams and officials who will be involved in the match will be in a “bio-bubble” upon arrival. This includes no contact with people who are outside the biologically safe environment prior to the match.

This is the first time CAF adopts a full bio-bubble in a match since the start of the pandemic last year.

The Qatari capital Doha hosted the two previous editions of the Total CAF Super Cup and will be once again the host of the annual one-match playoff.

The Total CAF Super Cup is an annual match between the winner of Total CAF Champions League and the winner of Total CAF Confederation Cup.

The first edition was held in 1993 between the winner of the African Cup of Champions Clubs (now known as the CAF Champions League) and the winner of the African Cup Winners’ Cup. Since 2004, it brought together the winners of CAF Champions League and CAF Confederation Cup.

Enyimba could only manage a stale 1-1 with Pyramids FC at the Enyimba International Stadium in Aba to crash out of the CAF Confederations Cup on 5-2 aggregate.

The Egyptian team were unlikely to face any troubles following their comprehensive 4-1 first-leg victory and winger Ibrahim Adel, who scored twice in the home game, effectively killed off the tie after opening the scoring in the 32nd minute. He robbed an Enyimba defender and curled a superb shot into the top corner of the net.

Enyimba levelled the score through a goal from Iwuala Anayo five minutes before the break but Pyramids held on to seal smooth passage to the semis for a second consecutive year.

Pyramids’ Argentinian coach Rodolfo Arruabarrena gave rest a number of his regular players following the comfortable first-leg win, including error-prone goalkeeper Sherif Ekramy, who made way for former Egyptian international Ahmed El-Shennawi.

However, El-Shennawi was unlucky as he sustained an injury and was replaced for Ekramy in the 37th minute.

Last year’s Confederation Cup runners-up Pyramids will face either Morocco’s Raja Casablanca or South Africa’s Orlando Pirates in the semi-final of Africa’s secondary club competition.

Andrea Pirlo surprisingly dropped Cristiano Ronaldo in the most decisive game of the season. The Portuguese striker was not injured but was snubbed due to technical reasons and because he felt tired.

The Old Lady needed a win at the Stadio Dall’Ara and hope Milan or Napoli didn’t do the same.

Wojciech Szczesny went down to block a cross from Lorenzo De Silvestri

Federico Chiesa broke the deadlock after just five minutes. Dejan Kulusevski picked the ball on the right and put it inside the box. Adrien Rabiot hit the crossbar and the former Fiorentina man steered it into an empty net.

Rodrigo Palacio was given the freedom to attack on the left, with Juan Cuadrado helping Matthijs de Ligt in central defence.

The Argentinean striker put in a couple of good crosses, but Szczesny was always in the right position to block the ball.

Kulusevski had a good chance in minute 23, but a Bologna defender deflected his shot from a tight angle.

Alvaro Morata doubled the Bianconeri’s lead and, just like, Chiesa, had just to put the ball inside an empty net.

The Spaniard’s goal game after a superb solo action by Paulo Dybala who dribbled past the defender and tried a lob shot that Morata helped in.

Kulusevski was once again pivotal to a Juventus’ goal as Rabiot made the most of his through ball to beat Skorupski at the far post.

Palacio found the back of the net at the beginning of the second half, but it was ruled offside.

Morata made it four shortly after with his shot that squirmed under Skorupski’s arm. It was also ruled out for offside, but the decision was overturned after a VAR check.

Juventus had more chances with Chiesa, Morata and Dybala, while Szczesny blocked a Vignato shot.

Palacio had one more opportunity from the edge of the box, but his curling effort was wide of the far post.

Juventus players on the bench stopped watching the game and just checked their mobiles instead.

Kulusevski had another goal disallowed as he was in an offside position in the build-up.

A Musa Barrow shot was parried by Carlo Pinsoglio while Dybala hit the post from a tight angle.

Juventus players remained on the pitch to watch the last two minutes of the Napoli game and celebrated all together after the final whistle.

AC Milan sealed a return to the Champions League for the first time in seven years as two Frank Kessie penalties earned a 2-0 victory over Atalanta, who also secured a top four finish.

Milan got their chance to go ahead just before half time when Theo Hernandez played a smart one-two before being brought down by Joakim Mæhle, allowing Kessie to confidently slot home the penalty.

Despite a nervy finish, the Kessie fired another penalty home in stoppage time to secure second place with Atalanta taking third and Juventus taking fourth at the expense of Napoli who dramatically dropped out.

An emotional Pep Guardiola claimed Manchester City ‘cannot replace’ Sergio Aguero after their all-time top scorer played his final Premier League game for the club.

The Argentine, who will leave City after 10 years in the summer when his contract ends, signed off in style with two goals in a 5-0 victory over Everton as he lifted his fifth Premier League trophy.

Aguero’s 260 goals for City make him by far and away their leading scorer and despite allowing him to move on, Guardiola said his qualities as a player and person will be impossible to replicate in the future.

When asked about Aguero, the teary Spaniard told Sky Sports: ‘We love him so much. He is a special person for all of us. He is so nice, he is so nice. He helped me a lot, he’s so good.

‘We cannot replace him. We cannot.

‘They are many players we have had to discard like him, Joe Hart and David Silva, who have helped us this club to be what it is.

‘He came on today showed his quality for 30 minutes.”