Sports

AMMAN — Jordan will play a test match against Saudi Arabia later this month, with two selection matches being held over the next two weekends to decide the final line-up, according to the Jordan Olympic Committee News Service.

It is exciting times for the sport here and this latest announcement will enable officials to run the rule over the current level of the national team ahead of bigger things to come.

A match this weekend will be between two “Barbarians” sides of players hoping to secure a spot in the national team. It will kick off at 10am at the Petra University pitch on the Airport Road.

This will be followed by a second “Barbarians” match next week before the final line-up is named by head coach, Graeme Forbes, for the Saudi Arabia match on May 19.

James Harden powered the Houston Rockets to an epic rout of San Antonio in their second-round play-off opener on Monday.

Harden had 20 points and 14 assists while Trevor Ariza scored 23 points and Clint Capela contributed 20 points and 13 rebounds as the Rockets dumped the host Spurs, 126-99, to start their best-of-seven Western Conference series.

“It’s just one win,” Harden said. “It’s a good win but we’ve got to be ready for game two. They’ve got a lot of fight in them. We missed a few shots. We’ve got to play better in game two.”

The Rockets sank a team play-off record 22 3-pointers on 50 attempts, inflicting the most three-pointers allowed by the Spurs in play-off history.

San Antonio trailed by as many as 39 points in the team’s largest game-one defeat in play-off history. The Spurs 69-39 half-time deficit was their worst in play-off history.

“We lost and they won and they played better,” Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said. “We competed but I don’t think we executed in a very wise manner.”

The Spurs and Rockets, in their first play-off meeting since 1995, were two of the three winningest teams in the NBA this season, both trailing Golden State, which opens the second round Tuesday against Utah.

A 15-2 run to open the second quarter put Houston ahead 49-25. The Rockets had 30 assists on 40 baskets, their passing and fast pace humbling the veteran Spurs.

“There are no individual efforts here,” Harden said. “I’ve been proud of that all year.”

The Rockets went 12-of-27 from three-point range in the first half, already hitting more shots from beyond the arc than in any first-round contest.

Kawhi Leonard led San Antonio with 21 points and 11 rebounds but the Spurs made only 31-of-84 shots from the floor.

Cavaliers 116, 

Raptors 105

LeBron James scored 35 points, and Cleveland continued its play-off dominance of Toronto with an easy win in Game 1 of an Eastern Conference semifinal.

James added 10 rebounds and four assists. He also tied Kobe Bryant for second place in league history with his 88th play-off game scoring at least 30 points.

Kyrie Irving had 24 points and 10 assists for Cleveland. Tristan Thompson contributed 11 points and 14 rebounds, and Kevin Love finished with 18 points and nine rebounds.

The Raptors, who were bounced by the Cavs from the Eastern Conference finals in six games last season, were led by 20 points from Kyle Lowry and 19 from DeMar DeRozan. P.J. Tucker finished with 13 points and 11 rebounds, Serge Ibaka added 15 points, and Lowry had a game-high 11 assists.

AMMAN — The Jordan Football Association (JFA) has announced the appointment of Michael Dickey on Monday as the new head coach of the Jordan Women’s National Team, in a statement.

President of JFA HRH Prince Ali welcomed Dickey in Amman last week where they signed the 2-year contract. “I’d like to welcome Mr Michael Dickey as the newest member in our football family. His experience, background and methodology are very much in line with our aspirations and ambitions, I am very optimistic about his potential with our Nashmiyyat,” Prince Ali noted.

Dickey began his coaching career in 1996 and has since then took on a number of directorial, scouting, instructional and technical advisory posts with several clubs and teams mostly within the USA. Between 2005 and 2010, he served as assistant coach for a number of US women’s national teams. His career as a head coach began with the USA U-14 women’s team in 2005 and then proceeded to coach the USA U-15, U-16 and U-17 women’s teams in later years. In 2009, he worked with the India senior women’s national team as a guest head coach.

His experience in 2010 with the USA U-17 women’s national team has been remarkable with notable wins over Germany, Brazil, Norway, Sweden, Holland, Denmark and China. 12 of the players he coached have since advanced to play for the USA senior women’s national team.

Dickey continues to be a member of the US Football Federation as national coaching education staff and national training centre Liaison, as well as the technical director of the Kentucky Fire Football Club.

“I am thankful to the Jordan Football Association and Prince Ali for providing me with this opportunity. I will do everything I can as a coach to help lead the women’s national of Jordan to the World Cup. I have met many of the players and watched them train,” Dickey said.

“They are very talented and also dedicated to winning. We will have a very busy schedule leading up to the World Cup qualifications. I look forward to all the support that the people of Jordan will have for their women’s national team.

“A special thanks goes out to my football club and club owner here in Louisville, Kentucky as well, Wayne Estopinal and the Kentucky Fire Juniors,” he added.

AMMAN — The Jordan Olympic Committee (JOC) on Tuesday launched its awareness campaign that highlights the efforts and sacrifices that the Kingdom’s athletes go through to become champions, according to the Jordan Olympic Committee News Service. “You Are A Champ” will be splashed across Jordan over the coming months utilising both traditional and social media channels to ensure it inspires the next generation of champions.

The launch video focuses on the challenges that athletes face in their daily lives and how much effort it takes for them to reach the podium. “It’s very important that people know about these athletes and what they go through to represent Jordan,” said JOC Secretary General Nasser Majali. During the launch, Majali also unveiled the new JOC logo which is a modernised version of the traditional logo used for the past 12 years. 

AMMAN — Jordan has a new Asian champion after Odai Abu Hasweh won gold at the Asian Kickboxing Championship on Sunday in Turkmenistan, according to the Jordan Olympic Committee News Service.

Abu Hasweh clinched the 63kg category after beating host fighter Sabayev Sanjarbek 2-1 in the final.

“He was up against it but came through in front of a crowd that was of course cheering on their home player,” said Issa Abu Nasser, Abu Hasweh’s coach. 

“It was a tough fight. Odai had to dig deep and was clever enough to take gold and bring glory for Jordan. We are extremely proud of him.”

AMMAN — FIBA, the world governing body for basketball , has upgraded a tournament being held in Jordan next week so that it now becomes an avenue towards qualifying for a World Tour, according to the Jordan Olympic Committee News Service. 

The Jordan 3x3 Spring Championship will take place at the King Hussein Business Park on May 5-6 and will feature many of the country’s top basketball players competing in a thrilling version of the sport.

There will be four categories with 16 teams confirmed for the men’s event, and a further eight taking part in the U-18 category. There will be eight teams in each of the seniors and the U-18 women’s categories.

“The event provides an opportunity for fans of the sport to see a new high speed and action packed version of basketball which has become a global craze,” said organiser, Ramez Kawar.

“We are delighted to announce that it has been given official recognition from FIBA who have upgraded the event to a ‘satellite’ tournament with the winner of the men’s going through to the next stage of eventually trying to make the 3x3 World Tour.”

That next stage is a “Challenger” event in Taiwan from September 9-10, and there is an added incentive for the women with the winners qualifying through to a tournament in Lebanon.

3x3 is gaining a foothold in Jordan who will include a male team for the upcoming 4th Islamic Solidarity Games to be held in Baku next month. The women, meanwhile, are also set to compete internationally for the first time with an U-18 3x3 side entered for the U-18 Asian Cup taking place in Malaysia, also next month.

“There is a lot planned locally for 3x3 which is growing in popularity in Jordan because it is fast and requires less space and equipment to play,” added Kawar.

“We are building a concrete base from which to grow. Next week’s tournament will showcase the sport to a wide audience and I encourage people to come down to see what it is all about.

“Some of the best male and female players in Jordan will be taking part so we expect a very high caliber event.”

3x3 is played on a half court with just one backboard and basket used. The clock rarely stops with possession changing hands immediately after each basket. Matches are 10 minutes long, or until a team reaches 21 points. Instead of two and three point baskets, 3x3 awards one and two points. The shot clock is just 12 seconds as opposed to 24 seconds in the full game and substitutes can only be made when the ball is dead.

SOCHI, Russia, April 29 — Formula One frontrunner Sebastian Vettel stunned Mercedes to take Ferrari’s first pole position since 2015 on Saturday with teammate Kimi Raikkonen completing a front row lockout at the Russian Grand Prix.

The pole, Vettel’s 47th, ended a run of 18 in a row for once-dominant world champions Mercedes, who had Valtteri Bottas and Lewis Hamilton right behind the two red cars in third and fourth places.

The German, a four-times world champion with Red Bull, has won two of the first three races and leads triple champion Hamilton by seven points in the championship.

As a measure of Ferrari’s achievement in breaking the Mercedes stranglehold and returning to form, the pole was only the Italian team’s sixth since 2008.

It was also Ferrari’s first front row sweep since Brazilian Felipe Massa, now with Williams, and Raikkonen qualified first and second at the French Grand Prix — a race no longer on the calendar — in June 2008.

Statisticians would have to thumb back to the 2015 Singapore Grand Prix, 31 races ago, to find the last time Mercedes had no car on the front row. 

“The first run was not really tidy, so I left it to the end, and I improved some time in the last sector,” said Vettel, who had to wait before confirmation came over the radio that Mercedes were beaten.

“I immediately opened the radio ‘tell me about the others, tell me about the others!’,” he said. “When I got the message we got it I was over the moon. The car was phenomenal this afternoon.”

Bottas was fastest in the first two phases of qualifying, with the choice of tyres coming into play, and those who had suspected the champions were hiding their pace in practice appeared to be justified.

But that too was a false dawn, with glum looks and shaking heads in the Mercedes garage as the reality of the situation emerged.

“I just wasn’t quick enough today, it was all in the last sector... so there’s some work to do,” said Hamilton, who had racked up six poles in a row before Bottas took his career first in Bahrain two weeks ago.

“Ferrari are quickest in qualifying and generally in race trim, so it will be interesting to see where we stand tomorrow,” added the Briton.

Bottas, who has yet to win a Grand Prix and joined from Williams in January, recognised Mercedes had expected far more from a circuit where they have led every lap since the race first appeared on the calendar in 2014.

“For sure they have a very good car and we are struggling to compete with them,” he said of Ferrari.

“Personally, and as a team, coming into this weekend probably we were thinking that it’s going to be better than Bahrain. So far it’s turned out to be not so good and Ferrari seems to be doing something better here than us.

“So for sure it’s disappointing for us not to be on pole,” added the Finn.

Australian Daniel Ricciardo qualified fifth with Massa sixth and between the two Red Bulls with Max Verstappen behind in seventh.

Renault, who have struggled to score points, again had a car in the top 10 on the grid with Germany’s Nico Hulkenberg qualifying eighth. 

Hulkenberg’s British team mate Jolyon Palmer compounded a miserable day, after an overnight chassis change and then a replacement engine, by crashing out of the first phase.

AMMAN — Wihdat host Bahrain’s Muharraq in Group C on Monday while Ahli play Iraq’s Zawra’a in Group A on Tuesday in the final Round 1 matches of 14th Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Cup.

Wihdat are now second in the group and need to win to secure qualification to the Round of 16 after holding Lebanon’s Nijmeh 1-1  in their last match. The Jordanian champs were held 1-1 with Muharraq in the first leg, but hope to come out with a victory to help them advance in the regional event after they lost the chance to retain the Jordan Professional Football League title this week following a 1-1 draw with newcomers Sarih. In earlier matches,  Wihdat were held 1-1 with Oman’s Saham and beat them 2-1, and scored a 1-0 win over Nijmeh.

Representing Jordan in the AFC Cup for the first time,  Jordan Cup title holders Ahli  lost their qualifying chance after they lost 2-1 to Syria’s Jeish to stay third. They earlier beat Oman’s Suweiq 2-1 and were held 0-0. They also held Zawra’a 1-1 and lost their opening match 1-0 to Jeish.

Clubs from five Asian Zones are competing in eight groups, with the top two from each group advancing to the Round of 16. This year, prize money has been set at $ 1 million for the winner and $500,000 for the runner- up. 

Locally, Wihdat now have the Jordan Cup in sight  as they have reached the semis. Wihdat have been league champs for the past three seasons, and won the title for the 15th time last year since moving up to the Professional League in 1975.

Ahli started the season beating Wihdat 2-1 to win the 34th Super Cup — the first major competition on the 2016/17 football calendar. However, recently Ahli have been struggling in the league and were eliminated from the Jordan Cup.  

The AFC Cup was previously won three times by Jordanian teams: Faisali won in 2005 and 2006, and Shabab Urdun in 2007. 

It is Wihdat’s 10th time in the competition after their ambitions of competing among top tier teams were dashed early when they were eliminated from the preliminary round of 2017 AFC Asian Champions League (ACL). Jordanian teams have never before made it past the ACL preliminary round. Wihdat were knocked out in 2016 and 2015, while Shabab Urdun were eliminated in 2014.

AMMAN — While some of the biggest names in regional rallying start to arrive in Jordan for round two of the FIA Middle East Rally Championship, a number of local crews are putting the final preparations to their bids to upset the big guns, according to the Jordan Olympic Committee News Service.

Twelve-time regional champion Nasser Al Attiyah, of Qatar, will head the cast for what promises to be an intriguing weekend of rallying from May 4-6.

But with nearly 50 per cent of the starting list containing Jordanian crews, who are familiar with the challenging routes through the Jordan Valley and they Dead Sea areas, the best they can expect is a stiff challenge from the home grown heroes.

“Obviously the spotlight is on Nasser who has won here in Jordan 10 times previously but anything can happen in rallying and the Jordan-based teams will be hoping to spring a surprise or two,” said George Khoury, clerk of the course for the FIA Jordan Rally.

Khaled Juma, in a Mitsubishi Lancer Evo X, and the return of Marouf Abu Samra, in a Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 9, will give local fans something to cheer while Ihab Al Shorafa, Asem Aref and Ziad Miqdad will also be hoping home comforts can make a difference.

The Jordan Rally will get underway on Thursday with a super special stage on the banks for the Dead Sea created for fans to gain a close-up look at the cars in action. On Friday and Saturday, cars will tackle 17 stages that will push competitors to the limit.

The rally consists of more than 240 km of timed stages on many of the routes that were widely praised when Jordan last hosted the FIA World Rally Championship back in 2011.

The regional series consists of five rounds this year, with Lebanon, Cyprus ad Iran following Jordan. Round one in Qatar was won by home driver Rashed Al Naimi after the overwhelming favourite Attiyah was forced out with a broken radiator. Naimi is unable to compete in Jordan, opening the door for Attiyah to potentially reclaim his lead in the championship.

Isaiah Thomas scored 11 of his 24 points in the fourth quarter, leading Boston on a late surge that put the Celtics in command of the game and back on top in their first-round play-off series with a 108-97 victory over the Chicago Bulls on Wednesday night.

Avery Bradley also scored 24 for Boston. Al Horford finished with 21 points, nine rebounds and seven assists as the Celtics won their third straight and took a 3-2 lead in the Eastern Conference series.

After losing the first two games, the top-seeded Celtics can advance with a win in Game 6 on Friday night in Chicago.

Dwyane Wade had 26 points, 11 rebounds and eight assists for the Bulls, who sputtered down the stretch and were outscored 29-16 in the fourth quarter. Jimmy Butler and Robin Lopez added 14 points apiece for Chicago, which was without point guard Rajon Rondo (broken thumb).

Wizards 103, Hawks 99

Bradley Beal scored 27 points, and John Wall had 20 points and 14 assists as Washington regained control of its first-round play-off series with a victory over Atlanta.

Otto Porter scored 17 points and sank 9 of 10 free throws for the fourth-seeded Wizards, who lead the best-of-seven Eastern Conference series 3-2. Washington offset another poor shooting night from the 3-point arc (7 of 24) by making 22 of 27 free throws.

Dennis Schroder had 29 points and 11 assists for the fifth-seeded Hawks. Paul Millsap finished with 21 points and 11 rebounds.

The series shifts to Atlanta for Game 6 on Friday. The Hawks won Game 3 and 4 at home by an average of 14 points.