The Japan Times - Sports (English)

'Like batting in a sauna' as Klaasen hits innings of a lifetime

Heinrich Klaasen said he had "worked my whole life" for a superb hundred that powered South Africa to a crushing 229-run World Cup win over champions England.

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Red-hot Martinez helps move Inter top as Kvaratskhelia revives Napoli

Lautaro Martinez continued his red-hot scoring form in Inter Milan's 3-0 win at Torino on Saturday which moved his team top of Serie A while Khvicha Kvaratskhelia's brace at Verona put Napoli's title defence back on track.

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Buttler says England have 'no room for error' after South Africa thrashing

England captain Jos Buttler accepted the champions "have no room for error from here on in" at the World Cup after a record 229-run defeat by South Africa.

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Mbappe on target as PSG ease past Strasbourg

Kylian Mbappe scored one goal and made another as a much-changed Paris Saint-Germain eased to a 3-0 win over Patrick Vieira's Strasbourg in Ligue 1 on Saturday.

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Man City return to Premier League summit as football mourns Bobby Charlton

Manchester City beat Brighton 2-1 on Saturday to return to the Premier League summit on a day when the action on the pitch was overshadowed by the death of England World Cup winner Bobby Charlton.

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Klaasen sorry for 'pure emotion' of World Cup hundred celebration

South Africa's Heinrich Klaasen said "pure emotion" had got the better of him when he appeared to roar in the face of England fast bowler Mark Wood after completing a spectacular World Cup hundred on Saturday.

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'No time for mistakes,' says Sri Lanka match-winner Samarawickrama

Sri Lanka batsman Sadeera Samarawickrama on Saturday said the team doesn't "have time to make mistakes" in their remaining World Cup matches after just one win in four games.

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Man City return to Premier League summit after Liverpool win derby

Manchester City beat Brighton 2-1 on Saturday to return to the Premier League summit and end Liverpool's brief stay at the top after their victory in the Merseyside derby.

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'What a day' - Dettori savours magical swansong at Ascot

Frankie Dettori brought the curtain down on his dazzling three-decade career in Europe on Saturday in fairytale fashion with two big race winners on British Champions Day.

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Kvaratskhelia double at Verona puts Napoli back on title track

Khvicha Kvaratskhelia helped put Napoli's Serie A title defence back on track with a brace in Saturday's 3-1 win at Verona which moved the champions four points behind leaders AC Milan.

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Bobby Charlton, Manchester United's English gentleman

Former Manchester United and England star Bobby Charlton, whose death at the age of 86 was announced on Saturday, will go down in history as the gentlemanly embodiment of English football's golden era.

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Dravid wary of World Cup becoming batsman's paradise

India's head coach Rahul Dravid on Saturday warned of the World Cup becoming such a batting paradise that teams might as well "play two T20 matches" instead.

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Grimaldo returns Leverkusen to top with win at Wolfsburg

A second-half goal from Alex Grimaldo sent Bayer Leverkusen back to the top of the Bundesliga table with a hard-fought 2-1 win at Wolfsburg on Saturday.

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Ton-up Klaasen stars as South Africa hammer England

Heinrich Klaasen made a brilliant World Cup century as South Africa thrashed England by a mammoth 229 runs in Mumbai on Saturday to leave the champions' title defence hanging by a thread as they suffered a record defeat in a one-day international.

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Engelbrecht's winding road from 'catch of the century' to World Cup

Sybrand Engelbrecht has taken a long, winding road to the World Cup, from a "catch of the century" contender as a junior to walking away from cricket altogether.

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England World Cup winner Bobby Charlton dies aged 86

England World Cup winner and Manchester United great Bobby Charlton has died at the age of 86, the family announced in a statement on Saturday.

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Kvaratskhelia double fires Napoli to win at Verona

Khvicha Kvaratskhelia helped put Napoli's Serie A title defence back on track with a brace in Saturday's 3-1 win at Verona which moved the champions four points behind leaders AC Milan.

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Salah double downs 10-man Everton in controversial Merseyside derby

Liverpool continued their stranglehold over local rivals Everton on Saturday, but had fortune on their side as Mohamed Salah's double secured a 2-0 win at Anfield.

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Stokes falls cheaply as England slump against South Africa

Ben Stokes fell for just five on his return to England duty as the champions collapsed to 38-4 in a crunch World Cup match against South Africa in Mumbai.

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Salah double downs 10-man Everton, sends Liverpool top

Liverpool continued their stranglehold over local rivals Everton to go top of the Premier League on Saturday, but had fortune on their side as Mohamed Salah's double secured a 2-0 win at Anfield.

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Ton-up Klaasen guides South Africa to 399-7 against England

Heinrich Klaasen batted through the pain barrier in Mumbai to make a brilliant century as South Africa posted a colossal 399-7 in a crunch World Cup match against struggling champions England on Saturday.

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Sri Lanka bring Dutch crashing back to reality at World Cup

Sadeera Samarawickrama hit an undefeated 91 as Sri Lanka brought the Netherlands crashing back down to World Cup reality on Saturday with a five-wicket victory which gave the 1996 champions their first win of the tournament.

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Rune hoping to glean Djokovic secrets from new coach Becker

Holger Rune hopes his new coaching collaboration with Boris Becker will yield inside knowledge on world number one Novak Djokovic.

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Shelton shakes things up to reach first final at Japan Open

Rising American star Ben Shelton said he had to "shake things up" to reach his first ATP Tour final at the Japan Open on Saturday after another gruelling three-set match.

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Latham hails 'fantastic' India ahead of marquee World Cup clash

New Zealand skipper Tom Latham on Saturday said hosts India have been playing "fantastic cricket" and the Kiwis will need to adapt quickly to win the battle of World Cup table-toppers.

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Hendricks marks South Africa return with fifty against England

South Africa opener Reeza Hendricks made light of his late call-up into the side with a fine fifty against England in a crunch World Cup match in Mumbai on Saturday.

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All Black legend Smith relishing his last tango in Paris

Aaron Smith says he is going to enjoy his "last dance" for New Zealand, hoping like fellow legends Dan Carter and Richie McCaw in 2015 that he bows out by lifting the World Cup trophy next Saturday.

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Engelbrecht, Van Beek hit maiden ODI fifties to rescue Dutch at World Cup

Sybrand Engelbrecht and Logan van Beek hit maiden one-day international fifties as the Netherlands recovered from a poor start to post 262 against Sri Lanka in the World Cup on Saturday.

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Morikawa recovers from horror start at Zozo Championship

Collin Morikawa recovered from "mistakes after mistakes" on Saturday to finish two strokes off the lead going into the final day of the US PGA Tour Zozo Championship in Japan.

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Stokes returns as England ring changes for South Africa clash

Ben Stokes returned for faltering champions England on Saturday as they made three changes before skipper Jos Buttler opted to field in a crunch World Cup clash against South Africa.

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Engelbrecht hits maiden ODI fifty for Dutch at World Cup

Sybrand Engelbrecht hit his maiden one-day international fifty to rescue the Netherlands in their World Cup clash with Sri Lanka on Saturday.

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Pakistan 'put arms around' Mir after catch blunder, says Morkel

Pakistan bowling coach Morne Morkel on Saturday said the whole team will "put their arms around" Usama Mir after his dropped catch opened the doors for Australia to clinch a crucial World Cup victory.

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