Sports News 12:30

BULLETIN SPORTS NEWS 14 January 12:30 pm

Good day, let’s look at the latest sports news and scores:

# We kick off with rugby: South African fans can now register for priority ticket access to the All Blacks’ tour, which brings eight matches to the country between August and September this year. Pre-sales opens at 10am on the 29th of this month, with general sales starting on 2 February. The tour starts against the Stormers in Cape Town on 7 August, followed by games against the Sharks in Durban and the Bulls in Pretoria before the first Test at Ellis Park in Johannesburg on the 22nd.

# Golf: South Africa’s LIV Golf team has rebranded itself to the Southern Guards, just months before the Saudi-backed league tees off on African soil for the first time. The team, previously known as Stinger Golf Club, had to rebrand due to trademark issues. The team, captained by Louis Oosthuizen and featuring Charl Schwartzel, Branden Grace, and Dean Burmester, features a rhino in the new logo. Southern Guards says at the heart of the team’s identity is an emphasis on culture, unity, and resilience.

# Tennis: South Africa’s Lloyd Harris bowed out in the opening round of the Australian Open qualifying in Melbourne. The former world number 31 suffered a straight set loss to 18-year-old Italian Federico Cina. American Mackenzie McDonald, who defeated Rafael Nadal at the 2023 Australian Open, rallied past Dmitry Popko of Kazakhstan. Belgium’s Alexander Blockx, Spain’s Rafael Jodar and Australian Cruz Hewitt are also through to the second round of qualifying. The main draw begins on Sunday.

Meanwhile, former Swedish ace Mats Wilander believes fellow former world number one Roger Federer will be the ideal person to coach the current best player in the world. Spaniard Carlos Alcaraz is without a permanent head coach after unexpectedly announcing his split with compatriot Juan Carlos Ferrero last month. Wilander thinks Alcaraz should do everything in his power to make the Swiss maestro his new mentor, saying Federer had a different kind of game and could help the younger man with outstanding issues.

# And soccer: The semifinals of the Africa Cup of Nations are taking place in Morocco this evening. Senegal will meet seven-time champion Egypt in Tanger at seven o’clock, with the match between the hosts and Nigeria starting in Rabat at ten. The winners will face off in Sunday night’s final in Rabat, while the losers will fight it out for the bronze medal in Casablanca on Saturday. Morocco is a four-time champion, Nigeria lifted the trophy three times and Senegal won the tournament in 2021.

Stay tuned for more news………….