Sports News 12:30

BULLETIN SPORTS NEWS 21 May 12:30 pm

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

# We kick off with rugby: Captain Ruhan Nel and winger Seabelo Senatla return from injury to strengthen the Stormers’ side for next weekend’s United Rugby Championship quarterfinal against Cardiff in Cape Town. Nel recovered from a calf injury while a leg injury kept Senatla out for most of the season. The hosts want revenge for last weekend’s group phase loss away to the Welsh side which saw them ending third on the log. Stormers director of rugby John Dobson says it’s huge to have two key players back for the important encounter.

# Cricket: More tickets will be made available for the New Year’s Test against England in Cape Town. Cricket South Africa says the announcement that Newlands was sold out was partly marketing-driven and all tickets are not gone. It also denied that most tickets were reserved for England’s fans. The Test will be the third and final one of the visitors’ first red-ball series in South Africa since 2019. The first Test starts in Johannesburg on 17 December, and the second in Centurion on the 26th.

Other cricket news: Three-time champions Kolkata Knight Riders defeated Mumbai Indians by four wickets to keep alive their slim hope of reaching the Indian Premier League playoffs. Mumbai, who was already eliminated, posted 147 for eight from their 20 overs. Manish Pandey then top-scored with 45 off 33 balls while Rovman Powell made 40, as KKR reached their target with seven balls to spare. KKR need to beat Delhi Capitals in their final match and hope that Rajasthan Royals and Punjab Kings lose theirs, to make the playoffs.

# Soccer: Aston Villa ended their 30-year wait for a trophy as they defeated Freiburg 3-0 to win the Europa League in Istanbul. First-half goals by Youri Tielemans and Emi Buendia were followed by Morgan Rogers’ strike in the second half, helping Villa triumph 44 years on from their European Cup victory in 1982. Manager Unai Emery, who has now won the Europa League five times, says this competition is special:

# And tennis: The world’s top players are reportedly planning to reduce their media appearances at the French Open in protest over prize money. Many don’t believe they are receiving a fair share of Grand Slam prize money and appropriate player benefits. Players selected for Friday’s opening news conference will walk out after 15-minutes. This is to represent the Grand Slams’ average allocation of 15-percent of revenues to prize money, while the players want the figure to rise to 22-percent. This year’s French Open’s prize money has increased by 9.5-percent.

Stay tuned for more news………….