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Seven matches played, seven matches won. A whopping 19 goals scored and only one conceded. The new Asian Cup champions Qatar not only dominated the continental championship but also gave a sneak peek into what lies in future for the 2022 FIFA World Cup hosts. Felix Sanchez’s young guns were truly phenomenal in the 28-day long tournament and the fans should be excited what they could offer ahead. Undoubtedly Almoez Ali was the star of the show – his stunning bicycle kick in the final against Japan making the 23-year-old forward the first player to score nine goals at a single Asian Cup. But make no mistake, this was a triumph contributed by every single player and support staff, with head coach Sanchez being the cornerstone of Qatar’s watershed moment in the sporting world. Sanchez says that victory over Japan is a vindication for Qatar’s extraordinary investment in football. The Spaniard was the coach at Barcelona’s prestigious La Masia academy before moving to Aspire Academy in 2006, when he began by coaching under-11 teams. The 43-year-old has since seen how Qatar has grown in football and he has played an integral part in the team’s success. Sanchez came to limelight in 2014 when he led Qatar under-19 team to Asia title with a squad that would also go on to make history at the senior level. His footprint on the team did shine through throughout the Asian Cup. Qatar were technically superior than any other side, they played possession football whenever required but were quick on the counterattack. “I have no words. We beat an outstanding, outstanding team,” Sanchez said. “In the first half, we played very well. In the second half, we had to defend a lot because obviously they want to win the title as well. It was a very tough game. We suffered and we know how to suffer. I’m very happy for the players and all of the people in Qatar who have supported us from the beginning. It’s very well deserved. I’m very happy. I have no words,” he added. Yesterday in Abu Dhabi, they got off to a blazing start with Almoez Ali scoring the opener after just 12 minutes before Abdulaziz Hatem’s stunning strike from outside the box in the 27th minute put them in the box seat. Having armed with 2-0 lead at half-time, Sanchez’s men sat deep but were resilient enough to keep the Japanese at bay. While they did concede their first goal of the tournament to give Samurai Blue a glimmer of hope, Akram Afif was super cool in converting a penalty to put the final to bed.   While all the focus has been on Almoez’s magnificent achievement, Afif has shown he has a bright future ahead of him. The 22-year-old has been a perfect partner for Almoez, with the Al Sadd forward making an incredible 10 assists – the highest in the tournament. With Sanchez ditching his familiar 4-2-3-1 combination to 3-2-3-2 for the final, Afif, whose elder brother Ali was an unused substitute last night, played on the right side and was a constant threat to Japan defence. The back three of Tarek Salman, Boualem Khoukhi and Bassam al-Rawi, who came back into the squad after a one-game suspension, came under barrage of attacks by the Japanese in the second half but the Qatari defence were calm and solid under pressure. Japan’s Yuya Osako, who scored two goals in an outstanding performance against Iran in the semi-finals, tested the Qatar defensive line at Zayed Sports City but the Wreder Bremen striker was kept quiet. The two wingers Abdelkarim Hassan and Pedro Correia also played their part with the latter hard to get past on the right side. Goalkeeper Saad al-Sheeb was beaten for the first time the tournament, but he looked sharp and showed a safe pair of hands. The midfield trio of captain Hassan al-Haydos, Assim Madibo and Abdelaziz Hatim acted as a bridge between the attack and defence and played their part perfectly.  After scoring a long-range effort, Hatim could have had one more in the final. “These players, they are amazing in the way they are working and the effort they are putting in to be here and to have this performance. We worked very hard and we’re very proud and very happy. In six games we didn’t concede a goal. It was very important and one of the main reasons we triumphed,” gushed Sanchez.   It’s just seven months since Japan matched their best ever finish at a World Cup as they reached the last 16 in Russia, reconfirming their status as their Asia’s top side. They were in line to make the quarters before Belgium won the thrilling encounter 3-2 in Rostov. Last night, Qatar showed they are not far off taking Japan’s place in Asia. Sanchez’s men were given only an outside chance of making it to the last eight, but as they kept winning their belief increased manifold and didn’t stop until they had their hands on the trophy. On their way to the title, Qatar overcame Lebanon, North Korea, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, South Korea, United Arab Emirates and ultimately Japan to prove that they belong among the elites of Asian football. While the Asian Cup crown sits pretty on Sanchez’s men, the true test awaits them when they cross the seas to take part in the Copa America as one of the two guest teams. Qatar are in the same group as Lionel Messi’s Argentina for the June-July tournament in Brazil.   While a victory there would be a far-fetched dream, there is no doubt that Qatar will be a force to reckon with against the mighty oppositions.

Dakar Rally champion Nasser al-Attiyah was given a grand welcome on his arrival in Doha, with the ace Qatari driver declaring he will be hard to stop in the next decade. The 48-year-old’s triumph in Lima, Peru on Thursday was his third Dakar title to add to his 2011 and 2015 wins on the world’s most gruelling endurance race. Al-Attiyah won by a massive 46-minute margin over second-placed Nani Roma, which gave the Japanese manufacturer Toyota their first Dakar triumph. Al-Attiyah and his French co-driver Matthieu Baumel led after every stage bar the second day in this year’s event when South African teammate Giniel de Villiers was ahead. “I am still strong and the support from His Highness the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani always makes me much stronger and pushes me to do well,” said al-Attiyah, after being received by Minister of Culture and Sports HE Salah bin Ghanem bin Nasser al-Ali at the Hamad International Airport yesterday. “In Dakar people were saying now it will be very, very difficult to stop Nasser in the next 10 years. I don’t want to say it will be easy but it is very much possible that I will win many more titles in Dakar Rally,” the ever-smiling Qatari added. Al-Attiyah dedicated his latest title to the nation, saying the victory tastes extra special as it comes in the midst of the illegal Saudi-led blockade.  “It’s a special victory because Qatar is currently facing blockade by its neighbours. We have always shown we are strong and His Highness the Amir Sheikh Tamim has always given us everything to be strong in sports, this why this victory is very special. Yes I felt more pressure this time because it was a difficult place to race. This was by no means easy so I am quite pleased to win after getting all the support from the country,” he said. Al-Attiyah, who previously won the Dakar with Volkswagen in 2011 and Mini four years after that, switched to driving a South African-built Toyota Hilux ahead of the 2017 race and had finished runner-up last year. While his other main rivals faltered in testing conditions, al-Attiyah was consistent and focused throughout the 10-stage rally. Not only was it a first win for Toyota, but it was also the first petrol-powered car to win the Dakar in the South-American era and much of that credit goes to al-Attiyah and his mastery. But the ace driver was modest in his victory and predicted them to do well in the next few years. “I am happy for Toyota because it is the first time in history that they have won the Dakar. It’s very important victory for me, my country and for Toyota. I received a call from Toyota owner Akio Toyoda, he was so proud and happy. I am sure we will be much stronger for the next three, four years,” al-Attiyah said. Now the Qatari legend says he will turn his attention to taking part in his seventh Olympic Games in Tokyo next year. A bronze medallist in skeet shooting at London Games in 2012, the multi-talented athlete is looking to make more history.  “I will show everybody I am ready for the Olympics, because it is also my dream to go to Japan, which will be my seventh Olympics. Also Toyota is the sponsor of the Olympic Games. After winning the Dakar, me and Qatar are popular in Japan,” he said. He also plans to defend his Dakar title in 2020 before heading to Japan. “It will be tough. I will start my preparation for the Olympic Games next week and then we will come back here to Peru to defend our Dakar title,” said al-Attiyah.

Paris Saint-Germain’s Uruguayan striker Edinson Cavani said Qatar’s participation in this year’s Copa America is ‘surprising but very special’. Qatar will take part in the world’s oldest continental tournament to be held in Brazil in June and July, after accepting an invitation from the South American Football Confederation (CONMEBOL). The South American football governing body has invited Qatar and Japan from the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) to take part in Copa America, which will give Felix Sanchez’s men an opportunity to test themselves against big guns Brazil, Uruguay and Argentina. Qatar will be making their debut in the Copa America, becoming the first Arab nation to play in the tournament, while Japan will be making their second appearance, their first since 1999. The draw for the tournament will be conducted on January 24. Cavani said Qatar’s participation will bring a new culture to mix with the South Americans. “It will be great for Qatar to participate in the 2019 Copa America because it is not just about football, but about the exchange of cultures and football for the whole world. To have Qatar at the Copa America is a surprise and I think it is going to be something very special,” the 31-year-old said yesterday on the sidelines of PSG’s winter training camp at Aspire. At Copa America, Cavani and Barcelona’s Luis Suarez will form a formidable strike pair for Uruguay, who have won the tournament 15 times.  And Cavani backs his country to lift the title again. “Copa America is the second best competition after World Cup. Uruguay has a very good chance this time. We have been playing very well in recent years and had a good World Cup in Russia. Historically, Uruguay is a team smart enough to have won it the most times. This, I think, gives prestige to Uruguay in this competition,” he said Cavani, meanwhile, said he want to see his contract out at PSG. The striker has been linked with a second spell at Italian club Napoli, having left for PSG some six years ago, but he admitted staying with the Ligue 1 champions was his priority. “Right now, I’m playing towards the end of my contract and possibly my career. I’ll be 33 going on 34 when it’s up. I don’t know if I’ll continue after 2020 and if my next contract will be in Paris, but I feel good here, the club is happy with me and I want to see my contract out,” he said. “For the moment, we have not talked about the new contract yet. There is no discussion around an extension. If the club wants to talk to me about it, that’s fine. If the club prefers to say thank you very much for everything and say goodbye, it will not be a problem. It’s life,” he added. Cavani said winning the Champions League with PSG was an ultimate goal. The French giants have struggled in the Champions League in recent years, having only managed to reach the quarter-finals. They are up against a resurgent Manchester United in their last 16 Champions League, with the first leg to be played on February 12 at Manchester and second leg taking place in Paris on March 6. Cavani conceded United will be a tough team to get past but said PSG were confident of beating them. United been a side transformed since the departure of Jose Mourinho, with caretaker manager Ole Gunnar Solskjær winning all six games in charge, including an impressive 1-0 win over Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday. “The departure of Mourinho has given the team new energy, and that has been shown in recent weeks. They have started to win matches and find continuity, we will be facing a motivated team that has a lot of history in Europe” he said. “But PSG is a team with great individuals that has improved recently. We will have a difficult task against Manchester United. I think PSG has always been at a level to compete well in Europe and I think everyone has seen that, but we have lost games. PSG has always been at the level to compete in Europe. And this year we hope to be able to advance more in the Champions League, which is a nice and important goal,” he added.

Paris St-Germain goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon believes Qatar is on the ‘right path’ as it prepares to host the 2022 FIFA World Cup. The Italian legend is on his third visit to Qatar and lauded the rapid growth of the country as it prepares to host football’s showpiece tournament in four years’ time. “It’s my third visit to Qatar. It has great facilities especially at Aspire Academy. The country is growing very fast and very rapidly and I think the country is on right path to get ready to host the World Cup in four years’ time,” said Buffon, who is in Doha for PSG’s annual winter training camp. Buffon, 40, spent 17 years at Juventus, playing 656 times and winning nine Serie A titles, before his 2018 move to French champions PSG. When asked of his chances of playing at the 2022 World Cup, the former Italy goalkeeper, who retired from international duty last year, did not completely rule out his participation as a player but said he could be involved in a ‘different role’. “I will be 41 soon and it’s a bit difficult to make it to the World Cup as it is still four years away but everything is possible. I may take part in a different role if not as a goalkeeper,” he said. PSG forward Kylian Mbappe, who won the World Cup in Russia last year with France, was hopeful of playing at the Qatar World Cup. “This is my second time here and I have discovered quite a few things here, and hopefully will come back to play the World Cup in four years,” the 20-year-old sensation said. The 2022 World Cup is scheduled to take place in November and December. This will mark the first time that the tournament is being held outside of the summer months of May, June and July. Mbappe said it did not make much difference when the World Cup will be played. “Whether the World Cup is played is in winter or summer, the competition will be tough and the dates will not make much of a difference,” he said. PSG's Uruguayan striker Edinson Cavani too was impressed with Qatar’s sporting infrastructure and said the country is on the right direction. “We are coming to Qatar every year for training and I think it’s a phenomenal country. It’s just fantastic and it’s developing very, very quickly. I think it’s a country for the future, the sporting infrastructure in the country is just exceptional. They will host a successful World Cup,” Cavani said. Today, PSG fans in Qatar will be given a unique chance to get close to their heroes, with an open training session to be held from 5pm at the Khalifa International Stadium, one of the 2022 FIFA World Cup venues.

A day after stunning World No 1 Novak Djokovic in the semi-finals, Roberto Bautista Agut recorded one of his biggest wins on the ATP Tour when he won the Qatar ExxonMobil Open. At the Khalifa International Tennis and Squash Complex, seventh seed Bautista Agut beat wild card Tomas Berdych in a closely fought final 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 for his ninth Tour title. For Berdych, it was yet another loss in the final in Doha. The Czech was runner-up in 2015, after losing to Spain’s David Ferrer. But looking back, Berdych would have been proud of his achievements this week, considering the 33-year-old was making a comeback to tennis after six months out from injury. It was dream week for Bautista Agut though. The World No 24, apart from his shock win over Djokovic, had also beaten former top five player Stan Wawrinka en route to the title. “It was a great start to the season, of course. The best thing is I felt good physically and mentally this week. And if I can continue like this, I think I can get better in the rankings and be closer to top ten,” said Bautista Agut, who collected 250 ATP ranking points and $219,755 in prize money. “Well, it’s always a very tough draw, very tough tournament with a lot of good players in the draw. And when I started the week, I was feeling good with the ball. I was enjoying practising. I was playing match by match. And since the first moment of the tournament until the last point, I felt really good on the court,” he added. This was the fourth successive time where Bautista Agut has started the season with a title, a success he attributed to his off-season preparation.  “Well, it’s a good time for me after being fresh and having spent two months at home. I did my preparation well and worked really hard. And I think also the conditions and the surface suited me here. It is good for my tennis and I think this is one of the reasons,” he said. The World No 24, still fresh from the emotional high of victory over Djokovic, was a bit edgy to begin with against Berdych. He struggled with his first two service games, and had to save a break point in the fourth game. But having held on, the Spaniard converted his first break point in the seventh game for a 4-3 lead, before serving solidly to grab the first set in 41 minutes. In the second set, Berdych upped the ante, serving well and jumped into the lead after a break in the fourth game. At 5-3, he then served out the set firing three winners to take the match to decider. In the final set, Bautista Agut built a 4-1 lead. Berdych threatened to break back but squandered two points in the seventh game. He missed an easy forehand approach shot, which clipped the net and agonisingly fell out, and that was the last chance the Czech would have.    Bautista Agut then went on to serve out the match to love with a forehand winner giving him his first win against Berdych since 2014. This was their seventh meeting, the first in three years, with Bautista Agut having lost the last three matches. Berdych, who was seeking his first title since Shenzhen in 2016, rued the missed opportunity in the third set. “I think it was overall a very good match and I think the biggest difference was one game in the third set where I lost badly my serve where I hit two double faults in one game,” said the 33-year-old, who walked away with 150 points and $118,320 in prize money. But the former World No 4, currently at 71 after missing six month’s action due to back injury, looked at the positives from the tournament. “I think it was a great week overall. I mean, coming after six months of not playing, my expectations were completely on a different level.”

For the second successive day, Novak Djokovic was down a set as the centre court crowd anticipated an upset at the Qatar ExxonMobil Open. But once again, the Serb, with his back against the wall, found the motivation to scrape out of trouble. The Khalifa international Tennis and Squash Complex exploded in joy as the biggest draw of the tournament, World No. 1 Djokovic, eked out a comeback 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 win over spirited fifth-seeded Georgian Nikoloz Basilashvili. Djokovic, bidding for his third Qatar Open title, will face seventh seed Spaniard Roberto Bautista Agut for a place in tomorrow’s final. Bautista Agut had earlier knocked out three-time Grand Slam champion Stan Wawrinka 6-4, 6-4 to enter the semi-finals. “I thought Basilashvili was playing terrific from the beginning. I expected him to,” said a relieved Djokovic after the match. “I knew that he’s playing probably the tennis of his life in the past 10 months, and he’s definitely one of the greatest hitters in the game.” As against Hungary’s Marton Fucsovics on Wednesday, Djokovic was slow to get off the blocks. The Serb had predicted a tough match against in-form Basilashvili, a strong baseliner who gives the ball a mighty thwack and had who won his first two ATP Tour titles in 2018, both at ATP 500 events. World No. 21 Basilashvili was the enforcer from the word go, breaking Djokovic in the very first game. The aggressive Georgian applied relentless pressure on the top seed for another break in the fifth game for a 4-1 lead. While Djokovic did pull a game back from Basilashvili’s serve, the Serb had no answer to the latter’s aggressive groundstrokes. But Djokovic, as has been his wont, was never the one to give up easily. The 31-year-old showed why he is the owner of 14 Grand Slam titles, bouncing back in the second set. He raced to a 3-0 lead, while Basilashvili threatened to regroup, Djokovic closed out the set to take the match into the decider. In the third set, the two players traded breaks in the first two games. Astonishingly, Djokovic showed higher physical energy than his opponent, despite playing his fifth match of the tournament – after having entered the doubles semis with his younger brother Marko. He also had the crowd rooting for him throughout, even as unforced errors crept into Basilashvili’s game. The all-important break for Djokovic came in the fifth game for a decisive 3-2 lead, as Basilashvili cracked under pressure. He then sealed the deal with three winners in the tenth game to come out on top of another slug fest, which lasted one hour and 56 minutes. It was the sixth straight semi-final for the Serbian, who capped 2018 as the oldest year-end No. 1 in ATP history. Djokovic celebrated his surge orchestrating a whistling contest among fans. Djokovic has now won 13 consecutive matches in Doha, and is 15-1 overall at the tournament. The World No. 1, owner of 72 tour-level titles, is attempting to lift a trophy for the 14th consecutive season. It is also the first time Djokovic has won back-to-back matches from a set down since Cincinnati in August last year, a tournament he went on to win Earlier, Bautista Agut put on a consistent performance to knock out Wawrinka. The two know each other’s game well, having practised together for years. And Agut put that to good use yesterday. The 24th ranked Bautista Agut played mostly from the baseline and controlled the match throughout. He broke Wawrinka in the very first game and never looked back to pocket the opening set. The second set too played out similar way as he sealed his win in one hour and 45 minutes. “I think Stan is a really good player. He is really a tough opponent to beat and we knew each other very well and we used to practice a lot during the tournaments. Today I was very consistent and played with a lot of rhythm. I think I played a very complete match,” said the Spaniard, who lifted the biggest title of his career at the ATP 500-level tournament in Dubai. In another quarter-final, wild card Tomas Berdych cruised past Frenchman Pierre-Hughes Herbert 6-2, 6-4. The Czech is playing his first tournament since June last year and showed some impressive form in Doha. He was awaiting the winner of the match between fourth-seeded Italian Marco Cecchinato and Dusan Lajovic of Serbia, who were playing a late match last night.     Results Singles (Quarter-finals) 1-Novak Djokovic (SRB) bt 5-Nikoloz Basilashvili (Geo) 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 7-Roberto Bautista Agut (ESP) bt Stanislas Wawrinka (SUI) 6-4, 6-4 WC-Tomas Berdych (CZE) bt Pierre-Hughes Herbert (FRA) 6-2, 6-4  Doubles (Semi-final) Robin Haase & Matwe Middelkoop (NED) bt Santiago Gonzalez (MEX) & Aisam-Ul-Haq Qureshi (Pak) 6-4, 6-1.

One set up and facing a break point while serving at 4-5 down in the second, Marton Fucsovics had his heart in his mouth, when he asked for a TV review of Novak Djokovic’s forehand, which was called in. As it turned out, the ball had landed just inside the baseline, and Fucsovics, who had a swing at the ball half-heartedly presuming it was out, lost his challenge and the set. It was just the opening Djokovic needed to make a comeback in the second round match at the Qatar ExxonMobil Open yesterday. After having lost the first set, Djokovic had failed to impose himself on Fucsovics in the second as well, before that crucial misjudgment from the Hungarian in the 11th game gave the world No 1 a chance to fight back. While Fucsovics lost his focus, Djokovic turned into beast mode and ran away with the third set and match 4-6, 6-4, 6-1 to seal his place in the quarter-finals at the Khalifa International Tennis and Squash Complex. “For the first two sets he was the better player,” acknowledged Djokovic after the match. “He played really well, smart, changing up the rhythm and the pace of the ball and moving me around. I was kind of in a corner and I had to find my way and fight my way through.” The two-time champion improved to 14-1 in Doha, with his only loss coming against Ivo Karlovic in the quarter-finals on his debut in 2015. He is also now on a 12-match winning streak and is well on course for a third Qatar title, to tie with Roger Federer. But all that seemed a farfetched possibility when Fucsovics overpowered Djokovic in the opening set with some clean and bold hitting. The world No 36 drew Djokovic to long rallies, varying the pace all along. At 4-4, Fucsovics broke serve on his third break point to move ahead before closing the set with a service winner in the following game. Just like in the opener, there were no break points in the first eight games of the second set as the two players preferred to play from the baseline. But 14-time Grand Slam champion Djokovic used all his experience when it required as he made a nice hold for a 5-4 lead, forcing Fucsovics to serve to stay in the set. Djokovic then found his range on his forehand side, earning two set points with a sharp-angled forehand winner before clinching the set in dramatic fashion as Fucsovics made an ill-judged Hawk Eye challenge on a Djokovic forehand which clipped the baseline. In the deciding set, Djokvoic was all over Fucsovics, breaking the latter’s serve three times. He sealed the match with three winners in the seventh game, to set up a quarter-final clash against Nikoloz Basilashvili of Georgia. The fifth seeded Basilashvili eased past 2018 runner-up Andrey Rublev of Russia 6-3, 6-4. Djokovic has won the only match he played against Basilashvili, but the Serb will have to put on a much better show in the semis against the tournament dark horse.  Meanwhile, three-time Grand Slam champion Stan Wawrinka put on another solid show to keep him on course for a semi-final date with Djokovic. The 33-year-old got the better of Nicolas Jarry of Chile 6-4, 7-6 (3) over 89 minutes for a place in the quarter-finals. Wawrinka, the 2008 Doha finalist, broke Jarry in the fifth game of the first set and took early control of the second set tie-break. He set up a clash against seventh-seeded Spaniard Roberto Bautista Agut, who cruised past fellow Spaniard and qualifier Guillermo Garcia-Lopez 6-1, 6-4 in 70 minutes. Italy’s Marco Cecchinato received a walkover after his opponent Guido Pella of Argentina was forced to pull out due to lower back pain. Fourth-seeded Cecchinato will next face Serbia’s Dusan Lajovic, who edged past Lithuanian qualifier Ricardas Berankis 7-6 (4), 0-6, 7-5 in two hours and 11 minutes. Pierre-Hugues Herbert, who had stunned second seed Dominic Thiem in the first round on Tuesday, also won yesterday. The Frenchman had to work hard before winning against Maximilian Marterer of Germany 6-3, 6-7 (6), 7-6 (6). Djokovic and his younger brother Marko entered the doubles semi-finals at the Qatar ExxonMobil Open yesterday. The Serbian siblings beat Damir Dzumhur of Bosnia and Dusan Lajovic of Serbia 7-5, 3-6, 10-7 in the quarter-finals. The Djokovic brothers, who had not won a match together in five attempts before coming to Doha, have now won two in two. They face either Nikola Mektic and Alexander Peya or David Goffin and Pierre-Hugues Herbert, for a place in the final. In another semi-final, Robin Haase and Matwe Middelkoop take on Santiago Gonzalez and Aisam-Ul-Haq Qureshi. RESULTS Singles (Second Round) n 1-Novak Djokovic (SRB) bt Marton Fucsovics 4-6, 6-4, 6-1 n Stanislas Wawrinka (SUI) bt Nicolas Jarry (CHI) 6-4, 7-6 (3) n 7-Roberto Bautista Agut (ESP) bt Q-Guillermo Garcia-Lopez (ESP) 6-1, 6-4 n Dusan Lajovic (SRB) bt Q-Ricardas Berankis (LTU) 7-6 (4), 0-6, 7-5 n Pierre-Hughes Herbert (FRA) bt Q-Maximilian Marterer (GER) 6-3, 6-7 (6-8), 7-6 (8-6) n 4-Marco Cecchinato (ITA) w/o Guido Pella (ARG) n 5-Nikoloz Basilashvili (GEO) bt Andrey Rublev (RUS) 6-3, 6-4   Doubles (Quarter-finals) n Robin Haase/Matwe Middelkoop (NED) bt Maximo Gonzalez (ARG)/Nicolas Jarry (CHI) 6-2, 6-4

Novak Djokovic and Stan Wawrinka won their opening matches of the ATP season, but second seeded Dominic Thiem was shocked by Pierre-Hugues Herbert of France in straight sets in the Qatar ExxonMobil Open yesterday. World No 1 Djokovic needed only 55 minutes to oust Damir Dzumhur in straight sets, while Thiem was beaten 6-3, 7-5 by Herbert in a late match. Wawrinka, for his part, sent third seeded rising Russian Karen Khachanov packing, winning 7-6 (9-7), 6-4 to start the season in style after spending most of 2018 on the sidelines with injury. Three-time Grand Slam champion and former World No 3 Wawrinka struggled last year had dropped out of top-250 for the first time since 2003, before regaining some lost ground at the end of last season. The Swiss began intense preparations for the new season in December, and that was well in evidence yesterday. Rewinding the clock to the days when he was at his best, Wawrinka displayed some high-class backhand game to get past World No 11 and doubles partner Khachanov. Wawrinka and Khachanov were on the same side of the net on Monday, falling short against David Goffin and Pierre-Hugues Herbert in the doubles first round. Yesterday, they were on the opposite sides of the court in a highly-anticipated first round match, which lived up to the billing on the Centre Court. Khachanov is one of the most promising players on the circuit, having defeated Djokovic in the final to win the Paris Masters title. But the Russian third seed struggled to get past Wawrinka’s serve, which made a big difference in the end. In fact, Khachanov won one more point than the World No 66 in the match, but Wawrinka pocketed the important points, including saving all four break points he faced. Wawrinka’s down-the-line backhand winners were a treat to watch on the day, with Khachanov watching helplessly go past him. The two had faced each other only once previously, with Wawrinka coming out trumps in a tight match less than four months ago in St. Petersburg. “Today was a great match. I played at a great level after more than a year out. I think, as I said before the tournament, I was happy with the off-season work I did. I worked long and really hard, hard enough to know that sooner or later it will pay off,” said Wawrinka, whose last appearance in Doha came in 2007. “I’m feeling good physically. Tennis-wise also. Today is the first match of the year against an in-form player, who won Paris Masters last year, had already played three matches before coming here, so I’m happy with the way I was playing today. I’m looking forward for tomorrow’s match,” added the 33-year-old, who will next face Chilean Nicolas Jarry, who defeated Robin Haase yesterday, for the first time. Meanwhile, Djokovic picked up from where he left off last season, with a 6-1, 6-2 thrashing of 47th ranked Dzumhur to enter the second round. The Serbian has already won an exhibition title in Abu Dhabi before landing in Dubai, and based on last night’s display, looks on course for his third Qatar title. It was top seed’s 11th consecutive victory in Doha, where he tasted back-to-back success in 2016 and 2017. The top seed will take on Marton Fucsovics today for a spot in the quarter-finals. Fucsovics beat Marius Copil 6-3, 6-2 in 72 minutes. The Hungarian saved all eight break points he faced to defeat the Romanian, whom he broke four times. “To start off the tournament as I have tonight obviously makes me very, very confident and also very happy. First day of the new year, I want to wish everyone a Happy New Year, lots of good emotions and lots of good tennis,” Djokovic said to the cheers of the centre court crowd. Today, Djokovic will also be in action in doubles, where he will team up with younger brother Marko as the siblings take on Dzumhur and Dusan Lajovic in the quarters. Meanwhile, sixth seed David Goffin was knocked out early. The Belgian lost to Lithuanian qualifier Ricardas Berankis 3-6, 6-4, 7-6(4) in two hours and 18 minutes. Berankis will play Dusan Lajovic in second round, after the Serbia got past Adrian Mannarino 6-3, 7-6(5). In another match, fourth seed Marco Cecchinato got his season off to a good start with a 6-4, 6-2 triumph against qualifier Sergiy Stakhovsky.  Results  (1st Round) 1-Novak Djokovic (SRB) bt Damir Dzumhur (BIH) 6-1, 6-2;  Q-Ricardas Berankis (LTU) bt 6-David Goffin (BEL) 3-6, 6-4, 7-6 (4); Stanislas Wawrinka (SUI) bt 3-Karen Khachanov (RUS) 7-6 (9-7), 6-4; 4-Marco Cecchinato (ITA) bt Sergiy Stakhovsky (UKR) 6-4, 6-2; Guido Pella (ARG) bt Cem Ilkel (TUR) 7-6 (1), 6-3; Guillermo Garcia-Lopez (ESP) bt Mubarak Shannan Zayid (QAT) 6-1, 6-3; Dusan Lajovic (SRB) bt Adrian Mannarino (FRA) 6-3, 7-6 (5); Marton Ficsovics (HUN) bt Marius Copil (ROU) 6-3, 6-2; Pierre-Hugues Herbert (FRA) bt 2-Dominic Thiem (AUT) 6-3, 7-5 Doubles (2nd Round) Robin Haase & Matwe Middelkoop (NED) bt 4-Dominic Inglot (GBR) & Franko Skugor (CRO) 3-6, 6-3, 10-7; Nicolas Jarry (CHI) & Maximo Gonzalez (ARG) bt Albert Ramos-Vinolas & Fernando Verdasco (ESP) 6-3, 6-4; Aisam Qureshi (PAK) & Santiago Gonzalez (MEX) bt Marco Cecchinato & Andreas Sippi (ITA) 6-3, 6-2.

“That winning feeling after long time,” tweeted Tomas Berdych with a smiley emoji after last night’s win in the first round of the Qatar ExxonMobil Open yesterday. The Czech had not played since last June after struggling with back injury, which put an end to his 2018 hopes. Berdych had to rely on wild card to enter the $1.4mn ATP 250 event here in Doha. And the former World No 4, now fitter and fresher, made a good start to his new season as he overcame Philipp Kohlschreiber of Germany 6-4, 7-6(5) at the Khalifa International Tennis and Squash complex. Berdych, ranked 71 now, was not at his fluent best but it was enough to get past Kohlschreiber, whom he had beaten on eight of 10 attempts coming into yesterday’s first round match. Berdych will next play eighth-seeded Spaniard Fernando Verdasco, who beat lucky loser Paolo Lorenzi of Italy 6-3, 6-4. Verdasco, the 2017 semi-finalist in Qatar, relied on his strong service game as he struck nine aces in a routine victory on centre court. Seventh seed Roberto Bautista Agut, too, had little trouble on the day as the Spaniard avenged his loss to Italian Matteo Berrettini in last year’s Gstaad final with a 6-1, 6-4 win in 69 minutes. Last year’s runner-up Andrey Rublev, who received a late entry after No 53 Mikhail Kukushkin withdrew, made good use of his fortune to beat Italy’s Andreas Seppi.  Russian Rublev snatched a tough first set 7-5, breaking Seppi in the last game, before cruising in the second set 6-1. Elsewhere, fifth-seeded Georgian Nikoloz Basilashvili lost just five of his first-service points in beating Spaniard Albert Ramos-Vinolas 6-1, 1-6, 6-1 in one hour and 38 minutes. Chile’s Nicolas Jarry, making his tournament debut, scraped past Robin Haase of the Netherlands 6-7(7), 6-4, 7-6(4) in two hours and 38 minutes. Today, all the top seeds will be in action, with sixth seed David Goffin kicking off the proceeding against qualifier Ricardas Berankis. But all eyes will be on World No 1 Novak Djokovic who will take on 47th ranked Bosnian Damir Dzumhur. Djokovic is bidding for his third Qatar title, after winning here in 2017 and 17   The match to look forward today is though between Paris Master winner Karen Khachanov and former World No 3 Stan Wawrinka. Russian Khachanov finished 2018 as one of the hottest players on the ATP Tour, beating Djokovic in the Paris final. Wawrinka came out on top in their only previous encounter in St Petersburg three months ago, but the big-hitting Khachanov will be hard to beat for returning Swiss, who has struggled with series of injuries recently. Meanwhile, second seed Dominic Thiem from Austria takes on Frenchman Pierre-Hugues Herbert.  Results  (Singles 1st Round)) Andrey Rublev (RUS) bt Andreas Seppi (ITA) 7-5, 6-1 8-Fernando Verdasco (ESP) bt Paulo Lorenzi (ITA) 6-3, 6-4 7-Roberto Bautista Agut (ESP) bt Matteo Berrettini (ITA) 6-1, 6-4 5-Nikoloz Basilashvili (GEO) bt Albert Ramos-Vinolas (ESP) 6-1, 1-6, 6-1 Tomas Berdych (CZE) bt Philipp Kohlschreiber (GER) 6-4, 7-6 (7-5) Nicolas Jarry (CHI) bt Robin Haase (NED) 6-7 (7-9), 6-4, 7-6 (7-4) Maximilian Marterer (GER) bt Peter Gojowczyk (GER) 6-1, 6-4 Doubles (first round) Damir Dzumhur (BIH) & Dusan Lajovic (SRB) bt 1-Mate Pavic (CRO) & Oliver Marach (AUT) 6-4, 1-6, 10-7 Guido Pella (ARG) & Marton Fucsovics (HUN) bt 2-Jamie Murray (GBR) & Bruno Soares (BRA) 6-3, 6-4 3-Alexander Peya (AUT) & Nikola Mektic (CRO) bt Marius Copil & Horia Tecau (ROU) 6-4, 7-6 (4) Marco Djokovic & Novak Djokovic (SRB) bt Mubarak Shannan Zayid (QAT) & Cem Ilkel (TUR) 6-3, 3-6, 10-6 David Goffin (BEL) & Pierre-Hughes Herbert (FRA) bt Karen Khachanov (RUS) & Stan Wawrinka (SUI) 7-5, 6-3    Today’s Order of play First round (prefix denotes seeding) Centre Court 3:30pm: (6) David Goffin vs (Q) Ricardas Berankis Followed By: (3) Karen Khachanov vs Stan Wawrinka (1) Novak Djokovic vs Damir Dzumhur                         Pierre-Hugues Herbert vs (2) Dominic Thiem  Court 1 3:30pm: Guido Pella vs (WC) Cem Ilkel Followed By: (WC) Mubarak Shannan Zayid vs (Q) Guillermo Garcia-Lopez Marton Fucsovics vs Marius Copil Court 2 3:30pm: Sergiy Stakhovsky vs (4) Marco Cecchinato Followed By: Dusan Lajovic vs  Adrian Mannarino Marco Cecchinato and Andreas Seppi vs Santiago Gonzalez and Aisam-Ul-Haq Qureshi Court 3: 3:30pm 1st Rd: Robin Haase and Matwe Middelkoop vs (4) Dominic Inglot and Franko Skugor Followed By: Maximo Gonzalez and Nicolas Jarry vs Albert Ramos-Vinolas and Fernando Verdasco

Novak Djokovic and his younger brother Marko finally broke their losing streak as doubles partners. The Djokovic siblings had previously partnered each other five times and ended up on losing side on every occasion. The Court One at the Khalifa International Tennis and Squash complex finally brought them some luck though, as Novak and Marko won their opening round match at the Qatar Exxonmobil Open, which began Monday. It wasn’t a cake walk for the Serbian pair as they had to comeback from a mid-match slump to register a 6-3, 3-6, 10-6 win over Qatar’s Mubarak Shannan Zayid and his Turkish partner Cem Ilkel. The packed crowd got a rare glimpse of the Djokovics in action together. The last time the two had played together was when they lost to Nikolay Davydenko and Dick Norman in 2013 at the Dubai Open first round. The Djokovic brothers had debuted as a pair at the Croatia Open Umag in 2007 -- when they lost to France's Mathieu Montcourt and Edouard Roger-Vasselin in the first round. It turned out to be sixth time lucky for Novak and Marko, as they celebrated each point like they would have done in their Belgrade backyard during their childhood. “Well, I'm glad to end 2018 with a win with my brother on the court,” beamed Novak, the World No. 1 singles player, later. “That was a very special moment. We played so far I think maybe four or five tournaments together, doubles, and we've never won a match, so today was a day we will remember together,” he added. The real Novak will be on show Tuesday though, as he bids for this third Qatar Exxonmobil Open singles title, with a first round match against Bosnain Damir Dzumhur. Novak, a champion here in 2016 and 17, is on a 10-match winning run in Doha and is the overwhelming favourite for the golden Falcon trophy. But Novak had bigger things on his sights as the 31-year-old opened up about his ambitions in the New Year. The 14-time Grand Slam champion felt that big four of tennis – himself, Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Andy Murray – were still the favourites to win Grand Slam titles in 2019, but did not rule out the younger generation to spring a surprise in the majors. “Judging by the last ten years and the dominance of the four guys in the Grand Slams, I think still if we are healthy and if we are playing well, the four guys still have probably the best chance to always win Slams because of the experience and just understanding of what it takes to win that title,” he said. Novak was quick to add that the next generation is already in contention and singled out Germany's World No. 4 Alexander Zverev, Croatia's No. 12 Borna Coric and Greece's No. 15 Stefano Tsitsipas as the ones to most likely make a breakthrough. “And in terms of the next generation, they are already there in terms of the rankings. You have Zverev who is now an established top five player in the world. For several years in a row he's been winning Masters events and he won World Tour Finals in 2018, which is a great win. “And then you have Tsitsipas and Coric and guys like that proving they can win against the top players of the world. And it's a matter of time when we will see some of them competing in the last stages of Grand Slams. Whether that's going to happen the next season or not, nobody knows, really,” the Serbian noted. Novak also hinted that he may adopt a lighter schedule in the upcoming years in order to spend more time with his wife and two kids. “Obviously, main focus and objectives are Grand Slams. That's where I want to be able shine and play my best. And the top ATP tournaments, of course, I will try to play with full season as I have in the past, but things are different nowadays with two kids and a family. That is obviously a priority for me. So, I have to always try to find a balance between the two and kind of try to satisfy both the professional needs, but also the private ones,” he said.

 World No.1 Novak Djokovic will open his Qatar ExxonMobil Open campaign against 47th ranked Damir Dzumhur, but it is a tough first round draw for Stan Wawrinka, the three-time Grand Slam Champion. Switzerland’s Wawrinka, who is on a comeback trail after suffering a series of injuries in the last couple of years, will take on third seed Karen Khachanov of Russia in the opening round at the Khalifa International Tennis and Squash complex.   In a twist to the tale, Khachanov is Wawrinka’s doubles partner this week at the ATP World Tour 250 series tournament, which will begin from tomorrow. Former World No. 3 Wawrinka missed three months of action last year after additional knee problems and dropped out from the top-250 for the first time since 2003. He recovered late in the season to finish the year ranked 66. In the New Year, the 33-year-old will be eager to get back to his best. Wawrinka is in Doha for the first time since 2008, when he lost in the final to Andy Murray. But Wawrinka won’t have it easy against the 22-year-old Khachanov, who was one of the leading players of last season. The Russian began 2018 just inside top-50 and finished the year just outside top-10. His breakthrough title came at the Paris Masters, where he toppled Djokovic in the final. After three ATP titles and 46 wins in total in 2018, Khachanov will be chasing bigger goals this year. On the other hand, Djokvoic, who is two-time champion in Doha, in 2016 and 2017, should have no problem in getting past Dzumhur of Bosnia. The two have faced each other once, at Paris Masters last year, where Dzumhur retired hurt after losing the first set. Djokovic is hoping to put on a strong 2019 campaign after an outstanding 2018 season. The 31-year-old managed to return to his best form during the second part of the last season. Most notably, the Serb won back-to-back Grand Slam titles at Wimbledon and the US Open, as well as returned to the No.1 spot for the first time since 2016. Last night, Djokovic showed he is in a good shape after winning an exhibition tournament in Abu Dhabi. The 14-time Grand Slam champion will be the absolute favourite to win his third title in Qatar since there are just three other top 20 players in the field:  Dominic Thiem is the second seed, followed by Khachanov and this year’s French Open semifinalist Marco Cecchinato. Thiem had a good run in Doha last year before he withdrew from his semi-final match against eventual champion Gael Monfils due to a fever. The Austrian will open this year’s campaign against 55th-ranked Frenchman Pierre-Hugues Herbert, to whom he lost in the only match they have played each other two years back in Rotterdam. Tomas Berdych, who has not been competing since June, has received a wild card for the event. The Czech, ranked 71 now, will take on German Philipp Kohlschreiber in the first round, the winner of which may face eight seed Fernando Verdasco next. Fourth seed Cecchinato and sixth seed David Goffin will await the qualifiers in their opening round matches.  Last year’s runner-up Andrey Rublev, who received a late entry after No. 53 Mikhail Kukushkin withdrew, will take on Andreas Seppi.  Meanwhile, World No 50 Robin Haase, who will kick-off his 2019 season against Nicholas Jarry of Chile, said he was ready to start the new season but added he didn’t want to go with any expectations. “I don’t have any expectations, because expectations is the mother of all disappointments. So I just try to do my best and work on my game. It’s going well with my coach, who has been with me for two years. If you keep pushing the boundaries and work hard then the results will take care of itself,” the Dutchman said at the draw ceremony yesterday.

Having spent the last three years in Doha playing for Al Sadd, midfield maestro Xavi is convinced Qatar will be ready well ahead of time to host the 2022 World Cup. Xavi was part of Spain’s four World Cup squads, including the triumphant one in 2010, and knows a thing or two about what it takes to host the biggest sporting spectacle in the world. And from what he has seen from close quarters, the former Barcelona star believes Qatar should have no problem hosting the showpiece football event. “I am the ambassador of Supreme Committee and I think they are ready. The Qatar national team and country both are ready. You can see such amazing stadiums. Everybody is surprised by the way Qatar is organising everything,” said Xavi on Saturday at the design launch event for Lusail Stadium, the venue for the opening and final matches of the 2022 FIFA World Cup. The 38-year-old also felt that Qatar’s national team is heading in the right direction and praised coach Felix Sanchez’s side for their recent performances in the friendlies against higher-ranked teams, Switzerland and Iceland. “I think they are preparing very well but it’s too early to make a prediction. The team are in a good way, they are doing well. They have a very good coach in Felix Sanchez. He is a brilliant coach so they can compete. Let’s see how they do at the Asian Cup in January. They have a culture of football. They are ready to compete. Everybody can see that in the last games they won against Switzerland and drew with Iceland. So they are ready and they have time four years more,” Xavi said. Xavi, who won 133 caps for Spain, has been tipped to be the Qatar coach in 2022. He is in his final year of his contract with Al Sadd and the midfielder spoke on what he intends to do in future once he decides to hang up his boots. “I am preparing as a coach, maybe next season I will start as a coach. At the moment, I am still a player at Al Sadd,” he said. Meanwhile, former the Netherlands star Wesley Sneijder, who is currently plying his trade for Qatar Stars League club Al Gharafa, said the World Cup in Qatar would be an experience in itself for fans across the world. “It (The World Cup in Qatar) won’t be different. The only difference is that you can now watch three games in the same day. So all these kind of things are an advantage. Let’s take for example Brazil, South Africa and Russia, it was impossible to travel to watch all the games in three days. Now you have this advantage and for sure the organisation will be perfect,” said Sneijder “The changes that I have seen over one year, it’s amazing. The roads, the parks that they are building, they are really making Qatar better and ready for the 2022 World Cup,” he added. Former Netherlands and Ajax international Frank de Boer said the weather will not be an issue at the 2022 World Cup and backed Qatar to outdo Russia, which hosted the most recent edition earlier this year. “I don’t see any problem with the weather. Right now outside it is 18-25 degrees Celsius, which is perfect for playing football. So I am not worried about it. The most beautiful thing is it is so compact. You can see three games in one day. The most important thing is that you can feel that there is a World Cup going on,” the former Inter Milan manager said. “In Russia, they did a great job but it is so spread out that you don’t really feel that a World Cup is going on. A World Cup should be for the fans. What I experienced in South Africa, in Johannesburg where so many teams were together and fans celebrating the World Cup. We are going to experience this even more,” he added. His twin brother, Ronald de Boer, who lived in Doha for seven years, said Qatar is a football-crazy nation and that the World Cup has come to the right place. “People here adore football. There (is) still lots of miscommunication in the world, so it’s a great opportunity to show the world what Qatar is all about,” said Ronald, who played for Al Rayyan and Al Shamal in the mid 2000s.

While many would crumble under home pressure, Bassem Hassan Mohamed seems to relish performing in front of the domestic audience. After winning the opening class on Thursday, the Qatar rider struck again by clinching the CSI5* speed class at the Global Champions Tour yesterday. Under lights at the spectacular Al Shaqab arena, watched by packed holiday crowd, Bassem was astride his 12-year-old Gelding Argelith Squid and the pair galloped around the 1.50m course in splendid fashion to eke out another win. Argelith Squid once again was in sync with Bassem and the rider was all praise for the horse for giving him his second successive win. “After three-four fences I really felt I could win. My horse did an amazing job today. For sure I am thrilled, but to be honest I am happier how I finished that course and how I planned and how he made it easier for me,” Bassem said. While on Thursday Bassem had to share his first place with Julien Epaillard after both finished on same time, yesterday the Qatari rider beat his French rival. One of the fastest riders on the circuit, Epaillard on board Safari d Auge flawlessly set a leading time of 64.22 seconds. But Bassem and Argelith Squid shaved off 0.11 seconds off Epaillard’s time by taking the inside line to fence 10, that would have made course designer Uliano Vezzani proud. France’s Roger Yves Bost and Tesway de la Batia, like many others, cut a stride out between fence 4 and 5 and was on track to challenge Bassem’s time. Unfortunately, the pair couldn’t execute the plan and finished with 8 faults and 66.85 seconds. The third place went to Belgium’s Nicola Philippaerts and J’Adore van het Schaeck, who completed their round in 66.29 seconds. Bassem, who became the first Qatar rider to win a home Grand Prix last year, will be looking for an encore today. It’s a high class field that will be in action today at the €375,000 marquee event, including 2018 champion Ben Maher. But Bassem in current form will fancy his chances as he rides with Gunder, who had partnered him in his victory last season. “Today’s win feels good but I am already looking forward to the last day and hope it goes well,” Bassem said. “I will ride with Gunder for the Grand Prix, the same horse I had last year. I am looking forward to it. I have had a good season. I was few times in the podium this year and also won a few classes with Argelith Squid,” the 31-year-old added. Bassem said the local support at Al Shaqab drives him to give his best. “To be honest, I am happy when I see more people. There is a good support for us and I want to thank everyone who are supporting us,” he said. Meanwhile, today’s Grand Prix will be see intense battle for championship runner-up position. With Maher to be crowned as the new champion, seven riders are in contention to finish second. Alberto Zorzi is currently second with 237 points, but the Italian has just a four-point lead over last year’s overall champion Harrie Smolders of the Netherlands. But what makes it interesting is the fact that just 28 points separate Zorzi and eighth-placed Christian Ahlmann of Germany. And with 40 points for a win at Al Shaqab, the battle for second place can swing many ways. Meanwhile, yesterday’s feature class was won by Ahlmann with 11-year-old grey Stallion Caribis Z. The pair came home in 45.06 seconds to set the fastest time as Ahlmann picked up €47,850 in prize money from a total pot of €145.000 in the CSI 5* 1.55m class. Smolders finished second with Emerald, while Shane Sweetnam of Ireland came third with Main Road. RESULTS CSI 5* Against-the-clock with jump-off 1.50/1.55m (€145.000) 1. Christian Ahlmann (GER) Caribis Z. Time: 45.06 secs. Prize money: €47,850 2. Harrie Smolders (NED) Emerald. 45.61 secs. €29,000 3. Shane Sweetnam (IRL) Main Road. 45.80 secs. €21,750 CSI5* Against the clock (1.50m) Table A, FEI Art. 238.2.1 (€50,000) 1. Bassem Mohamed (QAT) Argelith Squid. Time: 64.11 secs. Prize money: €16,500 EUR 2. Julien Epaillard (FRA) Safari d Auge. 64.22 secs. €10,000 3. Nicola Philippaerts (BEL) J’Adore van het Schaeck. 66.29 secs. €7,500   TODAY’S SCHEDULE GLOBAL CHAMPIONS TOUR 2:30pm: CSI 5* GCL of Doha Round 2 - 1.55/1.60m (€95.000 to individual class winners); 5:45pm: CSI 5* Longines Global Champions Tour Grand Prix of Doha - 1.60m (€375.000) HATHAB SERIES 9am: Against the clock NO Jump Off 1.15/1.25m; 11:50am: Against the clock with Jump Off 1.30/1.45m

Simone Biles, like many of us, would have lost track of the number of records she broke during the World Artistic Gymnastics Championships in Doha. The American is still just 21 and is far from finished, with a good four-five years remaining at the high level, probably more if she keeps her motivation intact. But even if she stops competing today, her records will be hard to beat. Yesterday at the Aspire Dome, Biles stormed to gold in the Floor Exercise and picked up a bronze in the Balance Beam, thus equalling retired Svetlana Khorkina for 20 medals at the Worlds. Since Biles has 14 of those in golds, compared to Russian Khorkina’s nine, the Texan is now the most decorated female artistic gymnast in world championships history. Only Vitaly Scherbo and Kohei Uchimura have more world medals than Biles with 23 and 21. The 21-year-old will be chasing the record next year in Stuttgart, Germany. Biles, who medalled in all six events in Doha, also became the first gymnast to win a medal in every event at a world championship in 31 years. No woman had medalled on every event since Daniela Silivas of Romania at the 1988 Olympics. Biles already has the record for most overall world titles, by a man or woman, now with 14. Biles finished her Doha sojourn, which began at a night in hospital with kidney stone, with four gold, one silver and bronze. It’s a remarkable feat, considering she was making a comeback after taking a year off, after she won four gold and one bronze at 2016 Rio Olympics. When asked what makes her the proudest of her accomplishments in Doha, Biles said: “There’s a lot to be proud of, but I’m most proud that I’m here, made all of the event finals, medalled in all of the events and I survived. “I am definitely very happy, especially to win a medal in every event. No matter what colour the medal, I’m really proud of myself. It feels really rewarding because I’ve put a lot of hard work and dedication into this sport, so I couldn’t be happier. I’m really proud of my performances here. I wish some of them would have been better but I’m really proud of the outcome.” At one point yesterday, it looked like Biles would miss out on a medal in at least one apparatus as she began the Balance Beam. The American was wobbly, nearly falling off the beam couple of times as she scored 13.600. As it turned out, that was enough for Biles to snatch a bronze, with only gold medallist China’s Tingting Liu (14.533) and Canada’s Anne-Marie Padurariu (14.100) putting on a better performance. “To be completely honest, I’m really just happy that I stayed on the beam because going into these World Championships I wasn’t as confident as I used to be on beam. So I think it’s a step forward and hopefully from here on out it can only improve. It was really easy to turn around and go into floor with an open mind,” Biles said. Once the beam hurdle was crossed, there was no doubt Biles would finish with six out of six. She was untouchable in Floor, with her difficultly level one point more than seven other finalists. The three-time Floor world champion made it four as she was sublime again, scoring 14.933 and finishing a full point above second place. The silver medal also went to US with Morgan Hurd (13.933) just beating Mai Murakami of Japan (13.866). Meanwhile, men’s all-round and Floor champion Artur Dalaloyan rounded off his Worlds with four medals. The Russian won silver in Vault and bronze in Parallel Bars yesterday. North Korea’s Ri Se Gwang, who performed the most difficult vaults, bagged the gold with 14.933 score, .050 ahead of Dalaloyan. Kenzo Shirai of Japan was the bronze medallist with 14.675. Men’s Parallel Bars went the expected way as Zou Jingyuan of China broke the 16-point mark again to become the world champion. Jingyuan’s perfect precision and smooth transitions put him a step above the rest of the field. Oleg Verniaiev of Ukraine with 15.591 finished ahead of Dalaloyan for silver. The last event of the Doha Worlds was a high-class, spectacular men’s Horizontal Bar, in which Epke Zonderland of the Netherlands emerged triumphant. Zonderland earned gold with 15.100 for his baffling release moves, adding to his Olympic and world titles from 2012, 2013 and 2014. Japan’s Kohei Uchimura took silver with 14.800, his 21st career world medal. American Sam Mikulak ended his individual medal drought at global event, by clinching bronze with 14.533, just .033 ahead of defending champ Tin Srbic of Croatia. Zonderland was happy to regain his title he relinquished to Srbic last year.  “It was a really nice routine. It felt good and there weren’t big mistakes. After two bad years before the (2016) Olympics, last year felt really good, but now I’m really back, and that feels really nice,” the ‘Flying Dutchman’ said. Results (top 3) Men’s Vault 1. Ri Se Gwang (PRK) 14.933 2. Artur Dalaloyan (RUS)  14.883 3. Kenzo Shirai (JPN)  14.675 Women’s Balance Beam 1. Liu Tingting (CHN)  14.533 2. Anne-Marie Padurariu (CAN)14.100 3. Simone Biles (USA)  13.600 Men’s Parallel Bars 1. Zou Jingyuan (CHN)  16.433 2. Oleg Verniaiev (UKR)  15.591 3. Artur Dalaloyan (RUS)  15.366 Women’s Floor Exercise 1. Simone Biles (USA)  14.933 2. Morgan Hurd (USA)  13.933 3. Mai Murakami (JPN)  13.866 Men’s Horizontal Bar 1. Epke Zonderland (NED)   15.100 2. Kohei Uchimura (JPN)  14.800 3. Sam Mikulak (USA)  14.533

There is a long-running joke about how Simone Biles would win even if she falls two or three times. The American turned that joke into a reality at the Aspire Dome yesterday. Biles had an off day by her enormous standards at the World Artistic Gymnastics Championships, as she fell twice on Vault and Balance Beam, yet the 21-year-old was good enough to clinch a record-breaking fourth All-around Worlds title. Later, Biles was her harshest critic as she admonished her performance, calling it “little disappointing and very uncharacteristic”. But in the annals of gymnastics, Biles is well on her way to become the greatest ever. The 21-year-old finished with a score of 57.491, ahead of Japan’s Mai Murakami and teammate Morgan Hurd, who was last year’s champion in Biles’ absence. Even with the mistakes, Biles’ margin of victory – 1.693 – is the largest at the Worlds since the current points system replaced perfect-10 method in 2006. Only her victory at the Rio Olympic Games, by 2.1 points, is bigger. Biles had won four gold and a bronze in Rio and came to Doha as a ten-time world champion, and the American conceded yesterday’s triumph was her toughest till date. “This one has probably been the hardest to get out of all my world championships and Olympic medals, and the scariest one. It’s exciting to bring back a gold medal for the US, but for me it’s a bit disappointing because that’s not the performance I would hope to give,” she said. “It was a tough day. I didn’t know if I was going to pull it off today, and then I started doubting myself and I tried to track back to training and see how well that went. I tried to just think of that. You should always fall back on training because I’ve had such a good training here,” she added. Biles has already added two more gold medals in Doha – the team and All-around – and she is in contention for four more in the individual apparatus today and tomorrow. She is the hot favourite to win in three of them, with Uneven Bars not being her best routine. Biles currently has 12 Worlds gold, tied with Vitaly Scherbo and she is certain to pull away from the retired Belarusian today, making her the most decorated gymnast. She could also become the first woman to earn six medals at a world championships since Yelena Shushunova did for Soviet Union in 1987. The kidney stone that had troubled Biles last week and forced her to check into a hospital seemed to have an impact on her yesterday. Or it was just the pressure of being on the verge of creating a history. Either way, Biles was jittery to begin with. The 4 feet 8 inch from Texas began her All-round final yesterday with a Vault, that has been named after her, but she goofed up her with landing, as Hurd took the early lead. Because of the Vault’s difficulty, Biles scored a 14.533, which left her in third place. Biles, however, vaulted into the lead, after a clinical display in Uneven Bars, where she scored 14.725. But a fall on the Balance Beam, when a somersault went wrong, and some impressive performances by Murakami and Nina Derwael, cut down her lead to mere 0.092 going into the final rotation. While Belgium’s Derwael was unlucky to miss out on a medal despite a good Floor Exercise, Murakami jumped into the lead with a score of 13.666. With all eyes at Aspire Dome on her, and not to mention about the pressure, Biles seemed to have crumbled when she began her Floor Exercise with one foot out of bounds on her first tumbling pass. But in the rest of the routine she bounced back in spectacular fashion, nailing her every move as the spectators gasped in awe at Biles’ agility and strength. The difficulty level of her routine was so high that the judges awarded her 15.000 points, sealing a remarkable victory. On her flawless floor routine, Biles said: “I was like, ‘Well, today seems to be horrible, so let’s see what else can go wrong.’ Then I had to get those bad thoughts out of my head.’ I’m used to ending on floor, so that’s nothing new to me. I had to go out there and put on a good performance for myself.” Silver medallist Murakami summed up the final perfectly, when she said: “Instead of thinking I could win, I was thinking ‘Oh, Biles can fall.’” The Japanese finished .066 ahead of last year’s champion Hurd. “I just wanted to do four clean routines and I did and it brought the silver medal. And I wanted to finish with a smile,” Murakami said. Hurd paid the price for a poor show in Beam and slipped down to fourth before a confident finish on Floor Exercise fetched her a bronze. “Vault, Bars and Floor went really well. I’m not completely happy with beam. I had kind of a large mistake. I’m not satisfied, and I would rather it have been little better, but that’s OK. It happened. I was trying to be a little too perfect,” she said. Hurd shares a good camaraderie with Biles, with the two constantly egging on each other to perform better during their routines. “I think we play off each other’s energies and keep each other having fun. It’s absolutely insane that she fell twice. It definitely pushes me to be such a better gymnast, and if I can’t reach her in difficulty, I definitely want to catch her with my execution,” Hurd said. Women’s all-around final (Top 8) 1. Simone Biles (USA) 57.491 points 2. Mai Murakami (JPN) 55.798 3. Morgan Hurd (USA) 55.732 4. Nina Derwael (BEL) 55.699 5. Angelina Melnikova (RUS) 55.698 6. Melanie De Jesus Dos Santos (FRA) 55.599 7. Chen Yile (CHN) 54.632 8. Flavia Saraiva (BRA) 54.366

It’s been a drama-filled 48 hours for Artur Dalaloyan at the World Artistic Gymnastics Championships. On Monday in the team final, the gymnast fell off the Parallel Bars, which cost Russia a gold medal to China. Post the final, Dalaloyan was gut-wrenched, crying in a corner as he trudged off the Aspire Dome main hall. But yesterday, Dalaloyan had his redemption after he became the first Russian man to win a world championships All-around title since 1999. But it was not before he went through some anxious moments. Defending champion Xiao Ruoteng needed 14.234 in the Horizontal Bar to snatch the gold away from Dalaloyan, who had already finished his routines. As it turned out, Ruoteng fell short by .001, which resulted in a tie for the total score of 87.598 points with Dalaloyan. But the Russian walked away with gold via tiebreak after the judges threw out each gymnast’s lowest score from the six routines. There was a moment of confusion on Dalaloyan’s face, but after the Russian was announced as the winner, he heaved a huge sigh of relief and hugged his teammate Nikita Nagornyy, who took bronze in 86.331. “When I saw the results I immediately saw that No. 2 came next to (Xiao’s) name and, of course, felt happy and amazing,” Dalaloyan said, still coming to terms with his dramatic win. “I had only one goal, and that was to perform my job from beginning to end without mistakes. I was surprised and can’t say anything more. I’m just so happy. I feel good, excellent. I simply tried to put in my best. I can’t believe it yet. I need to probably go to my hotel, take a deep breath and realise that yes, I won this championship,” the 22-year-old added. Dalaloyan only said “super” when asked how he felt yesterday, after having gone through the trauma of losing the team gold to China by mere .049 on Monday. “Yesterday was an off-day for me. I tried my best not to think about it. I didn’t train yesterday, and tried to focus on the (All-around) final,” he added. While the battle for gold was expected to be between Ruoteng and Nagornyy, who had finished 1-2 in qualifications, Dalaloyan was consistent in all six of his routines. After Ruoteng took an early lead, Dalaloyan’s high class Parallel Bar routine, which fetched him 15.566 points, enabled the Russian to jump into the top of the standings by .067 going into the last piece of apparatus. In the Horizontal Bar, Dalaloyan had a relatively reserved routine, giving Ruoteng hope of retaining his title. However, the Chinese star failed to beat the required total by the narrowest of margins, leading to a short period of confusion before Dalaloyan’s name came up at the top of the scoreboard. “I feel pity about that (losing a close final), but I respect the judges and my rival. I basically want to be number one but anyway. I am still happy with the result,” Ruoteng said. “There was a little pressure, but not so much, because I know how to adjust myself and give my best. I am satisfied with my performance,” he added. When asked if he knew the score he needed to win going in as the last gymnast in the competition, Ruoteng said, “I don’t pay so much attention to that. I just be myself and try to do my best to perform my routine. When I return to training, I will try my best to improve and be stronger to perform better in future competitions.” Meanwhile, United States’ Samuel Mikulak, who was third heading into the final apparatus, had to settle for fifth position after making two significant errors in the High Bar. The American’s mistake helped Nagornyy to bronze, while China’s Sun Wei was fourth. Today, Simone Biles will be eyeing a record-breaking fourth women’s world All-around title, which would take her beyond Russia’s Svetlana Khorkina.   On Tuesday, she led the US to team gold, tying Gabby Douglas and Aly Raisman for her country’s record of four Olympic/world team titles. The 21-year-old, if she was to claim two more wins in the individual apparatus this weekend, will overtake Vitaly Scherbo’s mark of 12 for the most golds in Worlds history. Final Standings 1. Artur Dalaloyan (Russia) 87.598 pts 2. Xiao Ruoteng (China) 87.598 3. Nikita Nagornyy (Russia) 86.331 4. Sun Wei (China) 85.898 5. Sam Mikulak (United States) 85.273 6. Kazuma Kaya (Japan) 84.765 7. Kenzo Shirai (Japan) 84.531 8. James Hall (Great Britain) 84.298

It was so near yet so far for the Russians. Nikita Nagornyy needed a score of 13.822 on the Horizontal Bar to clinch Russia’s first ever team gold medal at the World Artistic Gymnastics Championships. But a small error on an opening handstand meant he finished with 13.733 to hand China the gold by a meagre .049 points in a thrilling team final at the Aspire Dome. In the end, Russia had to settle for a silver, their first medal at the Worlds since 2006. Defending Olympic and world champions Japan took home bronze, 1.75 points ahead of the US. The top three teams also sealed their place at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. It was the closest Olympic or world men’s or women’s team final since the perfect-10 scoring system was replaced in 2006. The eight-team final was a see-saw battle, with China placed seventh after the second of six routines. But they slowly made progress and were leading Russia by 0.948 points heading into the final rotation — Horizontal Bar. Russia, however, came back into contention after China’s defending world all-around champion Xiao Ruoteng had a fall on the Bars, which meant a deduction of one point and a low score of 12.600. Russia would have prevailed if Nagornyy repeated his score from last week’s qualifying but with all eyes on him, the 21-year-old faltered on a headstand. In fact, it was Russians who were leading by a massive 1.919 after four rotations before Artur Dalaloyan slipped off the Parallel Bars and China took advantage of it, before nearly giving it away in the Bars. The breakthrough performance for China came from Zou Jingyuan, who was immaculate in Parallel Bars as he scored 16.200, the highest of the Doha Worlds far. China’s coach Liang Chow was pleased with victory especially as it comes after China had to be content with bronze at 2016 Rio Olympics. However, he added his team needs to improve a lot if they have to reach the greater heights of 1994 to 2014, when China won 10 of the 11 world team titles. “We are very happy with the win. After 2015, new athletes have come in and made our team stronger and that helped us to win the championship here in Doha. Russia have made a lot of progress and were impressive. Japan could not do well as they were missing two gymnasts due to injury,” Chow said. Ruoteng, meanwhile, was relieved his mistake on the Bars did not cost China the title. “I was feeling very disappointed after my fall. But I was keen to finish all my moves and help my team. I am glad it ended happily,” he said. Russia’s Dalaloyan looked at the bright side and said they were pleased to punch their ticket to Olympics. “Our main task was to qualify for Olympics and we have done it. We made mistakes but every team committed mistakes in the final. I am thankful to the fans who cheered for me after I fell as it gave me energy. We are happy with the silver medal as a podium finish at this level is a good achievement,” he said. Defending champion Japan, cheered on by vociferous supporters, were also in contention for a repeat of last year’s performance in Montreal. But they struggled on Bars, which undid all the good work till halfway point. Yusuke Tanaka came off on the fourth rotation, dropping the Japanese to third place, while three-time Olympic gold medallist and six-time world all-around champion Kohei Uchimura was still in discomfort yesterday, recovering from an ankle injury. Uchimura said: “I feel for bad for my teammates as I could not do well because of my injury. There is also lot of work to do between now and 2020, but we are confident we can win gold in Tokyo.” The US team, which came agonisingly close for a bronze, were impressive despite bringing a young team to Doha. Sam Mikulak said the experience of participating at a world stage will do a world of good for his young teammates. “We did the job we came out to do. We’re all much better gymnasts today than we were yesterday. This is an experience for a lifetime, and now, we put the pressure on a lot of teams who I think weren’t looking at us the way they’re going to start looking at us,” Mikulak said. “Coming into this, no one really saw us as being up on that podium, so we were coming in as underdogs. These guys are young. For a lot of them it’s their first Worlds. They came out and showed better than I did, the veteran, so that’s going to be a huge confidence-booster,” he added. The women’s team finals will take place today, with the United States led by Simone Biles heavily favoured to lead the defending champions to another gold. Russia, China, Brazil, Japan, France and Germany are other top eight teams who will be in action in the finals. Men’s team final Standings 1. China 256.634 points 2. Russia 256.585 3. Japan 253.744 4. United States 251.994 5. Great Britain 248.628 6. Switzerland 244.294 7. Brazil 243.994 8. Netherlands 240.660

Even when he is not at his best Kohei Uchimura can woo you with his pyrotechnics, like he did at the Aspire Dome yesterday. The Japanese legend is not the gymnast he used to be after tearing his ankle ligaments at the World Championships last year. His return has been slow and painful, but Uchimura is making steady progress as he makes a comeback with an eye on the 2020 Olympics at home. Yesterday at the Doha World Championships, the three-time Olympic gold medallist and six-time world all-around champion produced a magical display on the Horizontal Bar to top the individual standings with a score of 14.600 and help Japan qualify into the team final. Uchimura has opted out of all-round competition here in Doha with his ankle still in recovery mode and is focusing himself to just three events. While he erred on Pommel Horse, the 29-year-old posted the best score on the Horizontal Bar. Uchimura said he is still way short of peak physical condition after slipping off the Pommel Horse in the final rotation. “If I could say I competed six events, I could say I was tired. But I didn’t. Even though I didn’t do six events, I felt kind of tired when I got to pommels. And also, I didn’t have good training on the pommel horse,” he said. With less than 22 months to go until the Tokyo 2020 Games, Uchimura knows the pressure will only grow. “I come to the Worlds and everybody is looking at me like I am the king,” said Uchimura. “The other Japanese gymnasts don’t look at me like that but when I compete I feel it, I feel the pressure. I feel like I have to do well.” Meanwhile, Russian men, who had stormed into the lead in the team qualifications on the opening day, finished on top and look good to win their first World Championship medal in 12 years, after posting a massive score of 258.402. Yesterday, Japan could only manage a second after completing their routine, finishing five points behind Russia. The United States were third, with Great Britain coming fourth. China were competing late in the night, in the last of the ten sub-divisions.  Russia, China, Japan, USA, Britain, Brazil, the Netherlands, and Switzerland wrapped up the team qualification on top 8 positions respectively with France finishing 12th.  Xiao Ruoteng was star of the day replacing Russia’s Nagornyy Nikita (87.098) in Men’s All-Around Qualification after earning 87.332 points.  Sam Mikulak led the Americans with the second-highest individual total behind Ruoteng. Mikulak rallied his squad after, like Japan, three of his teammates missed routines on pommel horse in the fifth rotation. Mikulak appeared calm as he stepped up to the Pommel Horse despite his teammates’ inability to break 13.000 mark before him. “It definitely put a lot pressure (on me), but I think that moment I realised I needed that, I wanted that, because it’s going to be a lot of pressure in the next couple of meets. To really get out on this big stage and prove I’m a big competitor out here, I think making the statement was what I wanted this day to be,” he said. Meanwhile, defending rings champion Eleftherios Petrounias of Greece put his lack of preparation aside to top the qualifications. Petrounias, who will undergo a shoulder surgery in two weeks, scored 15.266 points. “It was a good performance if you think that I haven’t done anything since Europeans,” said Petrounias, referring to his gold medal-winning performances at the European Championships in August, when he last performed a full rings routine. “I used all my experience and everything was good.” Women’s qualifications will be held today and tomorrow. Based on their performances in qualifications, competitors will advance to team, individual all-around and individual apparatus finals. The competition will determine the winners of eight sets of medals for men (Team, All-around, Floor Exercise, Pommel Horse, Still Rings, Vault, Parallel Bars, and Horizontal Bar) and six for women (Team, All-around, Vault, Uneven Bars, Balance Beam, and Floor Exercise). The three medal-winning nations in the Team finals for both men and women will earn team berths directly to the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo while the others will have further chances toqualify in 2019 and 2020.