Sports News 12:30

BULLETIN SPORTS NEWS 9 February 12:30 pm

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

# We kick off with rugby: Springbok Sevens coach Philip Snyman praised his players’ effort and belief as they won the Perth Sevens, rebounding after last weekend’s fourth place in Singapore. South Africa defeated Fiji 21-19 to claim their first title on Australian soil since 2017. In the women’s draw, New Zealand thrashed Australia 29-7 to claim their third title of the season. Snyman says the victory in the final came down to composure, gritty defence, and good discipline:

More rugby news is England’s winger Immanuel Feyi-Waboso could miss the entire Six Nations after suffering a hamstring injury in training last week. The 23-year-old missed Saturday’s 48-7 victory over Wales in their opener and has been ruled out of coming Saturday’s clash against Scotland at Murrayfield. Coach Steve Borthwick has several options for wingers, including Henry Arundell, Tom Roebuck, Tommy Freeman and Elliot Daly. England had lost on three of their last four visits to Edinburgh, but heads to the Scottish capital armed with a 12-Test winning run.

# Moving on to cricket: Proteas captain Aiden Markram says they are confident heading into their opening T20 World Cup Group D clash against Canada in Ahmedabad, India, today. South Africa, who was runner-up in 2024, is one of the favourites to win the competition, following their World Test Championship triumph last year. Group D also consists of New Zealand, Afghanistan and the United Arab Emirates. Markram says they need to show due care when they face Canada:

Meanwhile, co-host Sri Lanka got their campaign off to a winning start, beating Ireland by 20 runs in the Group B opener in Colombo. Sent in to bat first, Sri Lanka posted 163 for six with player of the match Kusal Mendis finishing unbeaten on 56 off 43 deliveries. In reply, Ireland was bowled out 143 with one ball left. Meanwhile, in Mumbai, two-time champions England survived a major scare, narrowly beating Nepal by four runs in their Group C opening encounter.

# And lastly, tennis: South Africa secured a hard-fought 3-2 victory over Montenegro in Centurion to win the Davis Cup World Group Two playoff tie. Entering the second day of the tie yester at 1-all, the visitors took the lead by winning the doubles match. The homeside levelled the tie through Philip Henning, who defeated Petar Jovanović. Alec Beckley then claimed victory over Aleksa Krivokapić to seal the tie. The victory means South Africa will retain their place in the World Group Two for the ties in September.

Stay tuned for more news………….