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Mohamed Salah wins PFA Player of the Year award for unprecedented third time

Liverpool’s Egyptian striker Mohamed Salah poses with the Men’s PFA Players’ Player of the Year award backstage during the 2024-2025 Professional Footballers’ Association (PFA) awards, at the Opera House in Manchester, on August 19, 2025. (AFP)
Liverpool’s Egyptian striker Mohamed Salah poses with the Men’s PFA Players’ Player of the Year award backstage during the 2024-2025 Professional Footballers’ Association (PFA) awards, at the Opera House in Manchester, on August 19, 2025. (AFP)
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Mohamed Salah wins PFA Player of the Year award for unprecedented third time

Mohamed Salah wins PFA Player of the Year award for unprecedented third time
  • Salah, who joined Liverpool in 2017, was the Premier League’s top scorer last season, with his 29 goals, along with 18 assists, playing a key role in the club winning the league title

MANCHESTER: Liverpool forward Mohamed Salah was named the Professional Footballers’ Association (PFA) Player of the Year on Tuesday, with the Egyptian becoming the first player to win the award three times.

Salah, who joined Liverpool in 2017, was the Premier League’s top scorer last season, with his 29 goals, along with 18 assists, playing a key role in the club winning the league title, finishing 10 points ahead of runners-up Arsenal.

The 33-year-old had already clinched the Premier League Player of the Season award, the Golden Boot for most goals scored and the Playmaker award for most assists, making him the first player to win all three awards in the same season.

Salah first won the PFA award in 2018 after his first season at Liverpool, and again in 2022, and this year came out on top of a six-man shortlist, voted for by PFA members from the 92 Premier League and Football League teams.

That shortlist included his Liverpool teammate Alexis Mac Allister, along with Newcastle United’s Alexander Isak, Manchester United’s Bruno Fernandes, Arsenal’s Declan Rice and Chelsea’s Cole Palmer.

Salah signed a two-year contract extension with Liverpool in April, ending months of speculation linking him with a move to the Saudi Pro League.

Aston Villa and England midfielder Morgan Rogers was voted Young Player of the Year, after the 23-year-old scored eight league goals in his 37 starts last season and netted four goals in the Champions League including a hat-trick against Celtic.

Arsenal midfielder Mariona Caldentey was named Women’s Player of the Year. The Spaniard scored nine league goals in her first season with the club along with eight goals in the Champions League where Arsenal beat her former club Barcelona to win the trophy.

Canadian 21-year-old forward Olivia Smith, Liverpool’s leading scorer last season across all competitions with nine goals, picked up the Young Player of the Year award.

Smith has since joined Arsenal for a reported fee of one million pounds ($1.35 million), making her the first female player to break the seven-figure barrier.

Liverpool had four players from last season, including Salah, named in the Premier League team of the year, along with new signing from Bournemouth, Milos Kerkez.

Premier League Team of the Year:
Matz Sels (Nottingham Forest); Virgil van Dijk (Liverpool), Milos Kerkez (Bournemouth), William Saliba (Arsenal), Gabriel Magalhaes (Arsenal); Declan Rice (Arsenal), Ryan Gravenberch (Liverpool), Alexis Mac Allister (Liverpool); Mohamed Salah (Liverpool), Alexander Isak (Newcastle United), Chris Wood (Nottingham Forest).


Maharaj’s career-best 5-33 leads South Africa to a 98-run win over Australia

Maharaj’s career-best 5-33 leads South Africa to a 98-run win over Australia
Updated 19 August 2025

Maharaj’s career-best 5-33 leads South Africa to a 98-run win over Australia

Maharaj’s career-best 5-33 leads South Africa to a 98-run win over Australia
  • Australia captain Mitchell Marsh made 88 off 96 balls and Ben Dwarshuis scored 33, but Maharaj had done enough damage in his unchanged spell of 10 overs to give the Proteas a 1-0 lead in the three-match series

CAIRNS, Australia: Left-arm spinner Keshav Maharaj dismantled Australia with a career-best 5-33 as South Africa romped to a 98-run victory in the first one-day international on Tuesday.

Maharaj made full use of spin-friendly conditions to help dismiss Australia for 198 with more than nine overs to spare after South Africa had earlier posted 296-8 — the highest ODI total at Cazaly’s Stadium in Cairns.

Australia captain Mitchell Marsh made 88 off 96 balls and Ben Dwarshuis scored 33, but Maharaj had done enough damage in his unchanged spell of 10 overs to give the Proteas a 1-0 lead in the three-match series.

Travis Head (27) gave Australia an explosive start of 60-0 in the first seven overs when the left-hander smashed fast bowler Nandre Burger for five boundaries in one over.

But in a dramatic turnaround, the home team lost six wickets — five to Maharaj — for the addition of only 29 runs as Proteas skipper Temba Bavuma turned to his slow bowlers inside the batting power play. Australia went from 60-0 to 89-6.

Debutant off-spinner Prenelan Subrayen (1-46) had Head stumped off his seventh ball in ODIs before Maharaj removed five batters for single digits.

Maharaj had Marnus Labuschagne and Alex Carey trapped leg before wicket while Cameron Green, Josh Inglis and Aaron Hardie were clean bowled off deliveries that spun enough to beat the bat.

Marsh and Dwarshuis resisted with a 71-run stand but Lungi Ngidi (2-28) and Burger (2-54) wrapped up the tail quickly after Maharaj and Subrayen’s impeccable spells.

After losing the toss, three half centuries from the top four batters powered South Africa on a wicket where spinners ruled with part-time offspinner Head claiming 4-57, his second four-wicket haul in ODIs.

Aiden Markram (82), Bavuma (65) and Matthew Breetzke (57) all scored 50-plus before Australia came back strongly in the death overs with Head claiming three of his four wickets in the last 10 overs.

Ryan Rickelton (33) survived a number of close calls, including a dropped catch by wicketkeeper Josh Inglis, as he put on a 92-run opening wicket stand with Markram. Rickelton’s luck ended when he holed out to Labuschagne at mid off that gave Head his first wicket.

Markram looked set for his first century in the last 20 ODIs, but the right-hander played a loose drive against Dwarshuis and was caught behind in the 24th over.

Bavuma, playing his first international since leading South Africa to victory in the World Test Championship final, struggled to get going but Breetzke found boundaries against Australia’s third spinner Labuschagne.

Breetzke raised his run-a-ball half century but just when it looked like South Africa would finish off well he top-edged a slog sweep against Adam Zampa to Hardie at deep square leg.

Head then got the big wickets of power-hitter Tristan Stubbs and debutant Dewald Brevis in the space of three balls. Brevis smashed the spinner for a first-ball six in his ODI career before perishing off the next ball when he couldn’t clear Carey at long off.


New boy Joao Felix fires 10-man Al-Nassr to Saudi Super Cup win over Al-Ittihad

New boy Joao Felix fires 10-man Al-Nassr to Saudi Super Cup win over Al-Ittihad
Updated 19 August 2025

New boy Joao Felix fires 10-man Al-Nassr to Saudi Super Cup win over Al-Ittihad

New boy Joao Felix fires 10-man Al-Nassr to Saudi Super Cup win over Al-Ittihad
  • Sadio Mane sent off after just 25 minutes, but new arrival from Chelsea grabs the winner in a 2-1 victory
  • The Jeddah side will face either Al-Ahli or Al-Qadsiah in the final on Saturday

LONDON: Joao Felix shone on his club debut as 10-man Al-Nassr defeated Al-Ittihad 2-1 in the semi-finals of the Saudi Super Cup in Hong Kong on Tuesday.

The forward, who joined the Jeddah side at the end of July from Chelsea, grabbed the second-half winner for his new team, who were reduced to 10 men after just 25 minutes when Sadio Mane was sent off.

Before the red card, Mane had opened the scoring in fine fashion after just 10 minutes. Ayman Yahya freed Marcelo Brozovic down the left and the Croatian fired in a low cross from the byline. The ball was in the air and a little behind Mane but the former Liverpool star managed to lean back and volley it into the net from near the penalty spot, although goalkeeper Hamed Al-Shanqiti got his hands to the shot and should probably have kept it out.

The advantage was short-lived, however, as the reigning Saudi Pro League champions hit back just six minutes later. Mario Mitaj carried the ball forward down the left and found Moussa Diaby inside the box. The French winger then slipped the ball back for Steven Bergwijn to slot home.

New Al-Nassr coach Jorge Jesus soon faced a bigger headache nine minuted later when Mane was given his marching orders. The Senegalese attacker seemed to stamp on Al-Shanqiti as he went for the ball and, after the video assistant referee had a look, the Riyadh side were down to 10 men.

Yet on the hour mark, it was Al-Nassr who took the lead once again. Cristiano Ronaldo broke free down the right, entered the area and, despite having only the goalkeeper to beat, the 40-year-old unselfishly side-footed the ball to Felix, and his Portuguese compatriot made no mistake from close range.

Five minutes later, Felix fired home a rocket from the edge of the area, only for the goal to be ruled out because of a foul in the build-up. He came close once again when he rounded the goalkeeper, but hit the post from a tight angle.

Al-Ittihad had almost two-thirds of the possession but could not get back into the game, and when Saleh Al-Shehri headed straight at the goalkeeper from close range in injury time, it was all over.

With last season’s Pro League runners-up Al-Hilal, who finished the season five points clear of third-place Al-Nassr, opting not to participate in this traditional curtain-raiser to the new campaign, after their exploits in the FIFA Club World Cup in the US over the summer, the second semi-final, on Wednesday, will feature fourth-placed Al-Qadsiah and Al-Ahli, who finished fifth in the league and are reigning Asian champions. The final will take place on Saturday.


Gill and Bumrah in India’s Asia Cup squad, Jaiswal ignored

Gill and Bumrah in India’s Asia Cup squad, Jaiswal ignored
Updated 19 August 2025

Gill and Bumrah in India’s Asia Cup squad, Jaiswal ignored

Gill and Bumrah in India’s Asia Cup squad, Jaiswal ignored
  • India’s test captain Gill has not played a T20 International since July last year
  • India begin their Group A campaign against hosts UAE before meeting Pakistan

NEW DELHI: Defending champions India named top order batter Shubman Gill and pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah in their Twenty20 squad on Tuesday for next month’s Asia Cup in the United Arab Emirates.

Opener Yashasvi Jaiswal and middle order batter Shreyas Iyer, however, could not make the cut in the 15-member squad led by Suryakumar Yadav.

India’s test captain Gill has not played a T20 International since July last year when he was Suryakumar’s deputy on the tour of Sri Lanka.

“That’s where we started a new cycle,” Suryakumar, who took over T20 captaincy from Rohit Sharma after India won the 20-overs World Cup title last year, told reporters.

“After that he got busy with all the test series and he didn’t get an opportunity to play T20s because he was busy playing test cricket and Champions Trophy.

“So he’s there in the squad and we’re happy to have him.”

India also included Bumrah, whose workload has been a major concern for the team think-tank, which played him in three of the five tests in England earlier this year.

With three opening options in Gill, Abhishek Sharma and Sanju Samson — India could not accommodate Jaiswal.

“With regard to Yashasvi, it’s just unfortunate again,” chief selector Ajit Agarkar said.

“There’s Abhishek Sharma, what he’s done over the last year or so, plus he can bowl a little bit, he gives us that option if required.

“One of these guys was going to miss out, Yashasvi just has to wait for his chance.”

Samson and Jitesh Sharma are the two wicketkeepers in the side, which also includes left-arm wrist-spinner Kuldeep Yadav.

India begin their Group A campaign against hosts United Arab Emirates in Dubai before meeting arch-rivals Pakistan at the same venue four days later.

India squad: Suryakumar Yadav (captain), Shubman Gill, Hardik Pandya, Arshdeep Singh, Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Varma, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel, Jitesh Sharma, Jasprit Bumrah, Varun Chakravarthy, Kuldeep Yadav, Harshit Rana, Rinku Singh, Sanju Samson 


Pakistan Cricket Board downgrades contracts for Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan

Pakistan Cricket Board downgrades contracts for Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan
Updated 19 August 2025

Pakistan Cricket Board downgrades contracts for Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan

Pakistan Cricket Board downgrades contracts for Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan
  • No player awarded top-tier contract as PCB splits pool evenly across B, C and D categories
  • Test captain Shan Masood, pacer Naseem Shah demoted as part of PCB’s contract reshuffle

ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Cricket Board has downgraded deals for Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan in the latest list of 30 centrally contracted players announced on Tuesday.

Both Babar and Rizwan were in category A but have been relegated to join Abrar Ahmed, Fakhar Zaman, Haris Rauf, Hasan Ali, Saim Ayub, Salman Ali Agha, Shadab Khan and Shaheen Shah Afridi in category B.

The PCB didn’t contract any players at the highest level, instead selecting 10 players in each of the B, C and D categories.

Pakistan’s white-ball head coach Mike Hesson said last weekend that Babar needed to work on his strike-rate and playing against spin in the T20 format. Selectors yet again ignored both Babar and Rizwan in the Pakistan T20 squad for an upcoming tri-series and the Asia Cup.

Pakistan finished at the bottom of the ICC World Test Championship and the PCB has demoted its test captain Shan Masood from category B to category D.

Fast bowler Naseem Shah, who was also dropped for the upcoming T20 tournaments in the United Arab Emirates, was dropped from the second tier to the third tier of contracted players.

Wickekeeper-batter Usman Khan, who chose to play for Pakistan over the UAE, was among the eight international players who didn’t get a central contract.

While some key Pakistan cricketers were demoted, legspinner Ahmed, fast bowler Rauf, opening batter Ayub, T20 captain Agha and legspinner Shadab Khan were all upgraded from C to B category contracts.

The contracts run through June 30, 2026.


Team Falcons lead Club Championship standings at Esports World Cup 

Team Falcons lead Club Championship standings at Esports World Cup 
The Esports World Cup 2025 in Riyadh has now entered its seventh week. (SUPPLIED)
Updated 19 August 2025

Team Falcons lead Club Championship standings at Esports World Cup 

Team Falcons lead Club Championship standings at Esports World Cup 
  • Just a handful of clubs can still win the title, with the Saudi team lying ahead of Team Liquid in second

RIYADH: The sixth week of the 2025 Esports World Cup concluded a change in the Club Championship lead, Karmine Corp winning Rocket League and a new back-to-back EWC title winner emerging.

Rocket League

Karmine Corp secured a dominant 4-1 victory over Geekay Esports to cement the roster’s pedigree within Rocket League. The team had an unbeaten run at EWC 25, ending in a near-perfect grand final showing. They had not conceded so much as a single goal until the fourth game of the final, but Geekay Esports prevented them from securing a clean sweep.

The tournament brought 16 top teams to Riyadh to compete for a $1m prize pool, with Karmine Corp claiming $400,000 for their victory. Their performance highlighted why they’re currently the most feared team in Rocket League, with strong showings in the group stage, an impressive win over Team Falcons — the only other LAN winners in 2025 — in the semifinals, and their commanding victory in the grand final.

PUBG: BATTLEGROUNDS

Twisted Minds took home the PUBG: BATTLEGROUNDS title after emerging victorious in one of the closest PUBG finals ever. Having been knocked out in the group stage at EWC 24, the club’s performance this year more than made up for that disappointment.

Despite their underwhelming showing last year, they ended on a high with back-to-back PUBG Global Series Finals wins.

That set them up to claim the EWC 25 title in a tough field of 12 teams. Displaying great individual plays, they earned enough points to go into the final match with a small lead. Just Dmytrii “Perfect1ks” Dubenyuk was left alive in the closing moments, but it was enough for Twisted Minds to secure overall victory.

Teamfight Tactics

It was Weibo Gaming from China who secured the title here. They had a tough run, and although not the favorites from the outset, they quickly became one of the standout teams as the event progressed.

Their grand final opponents, Virtus.pro, built a reputation as giant slayers, knocking out both EWC 24 grand final sides on their way.

Ultimately, Weibo Gaming were able to maintain their unbeaten run to lift the trophy. Virtus.pro gave them a hard time of it, but they kept their cool and secured the title with a 3-1 victory.

TEKKEN 8

DN Freecs’ Lim “Ulsan” Soo-hoon was again victorious in TEKKEN 8. After last year’s win, there were high expectations when he took to the stage this year. Despite an early group stage loss to Kim “Kkokkoma” Mu-jong during phase two, Ulsan was able to climb out of the lower bracket and dominate from that point onwards — even taking his revenge by knocking Kkokkoma out of the competition.

With his grand final victory over Yoon “LowHigh” Sun-woong, Ulsan etched his name into the history books by taking won back-to-back EWC TEKKEN 8 titles. Given his dominance, eyes will now turn to EWC 26 — can he do it again and become a three-time champion?

Street Fighter 6 Last Chance Qualifier

Claude Eric “Hurricane” Diboti, a Cameroonian-born UK Street Fighter competitor playing for Wolves Esports, displayed his skill in this intense Street Fighter 6 EWC Last Chance Qualifier. From his first game in the pools, his presence was unmissable — in total, he had nine games and did not lose a single set.

Knocking out a number of notable players on the way, Hurricane will be a player to watch in Week 7 when the Street Fighter 6 tournament begins.

Club Championship

At the end of Week 6, just a handful of clubs are still in the running to take the Club Championship.

There has been another change at the top with Team Falcons back in first place thanks to two third place finishes in PUBG and Rocket League. Though they failed to secure points in Teamfight Tactics and TEKKEN 8, it was still a positive week for the reigning champions.

With just three games left to play in Week 7, and with second-place Team Liquid also competing in all three games, we are in for an incredible week.

Outside those two, third-place Team Vitality can theoretically still win, though it would require them to claim the title in Counter-Strike 2 and Team Falcons to gain zero points in Week 7. They would also need Team Liquid to pick up fewer than 600 points.

Twisted Minds and Virtus.pro share fourth place, and with multiple teams playing next week they are still in with a shot.

However, it will take a sterling effort if they are to catch Team Falcons and Virtus.pro would also need to claim victory in one of those titles to be eligible to win the Club Championship.