Qualifier Chwalinska sets up Andreeva French Open final clash

Paris: Maja Chwalinska made French Open history on Thursday as the world number 114 became the first qualifier in the professional era to reach the Roland Garros final, where she will take on Mirra Andreeva. orlando-books.blog

The Pole downed Diana Shnaider 7-6 (7/4), 6-4 in the last four to join Russian 19-year-old Andreeva, a straight-sets winner over Marta Kostyuk, in Saturday's title-decider.

Should she best Andreeva in the final, Chwalinska will become just the second woman to come through qualifying and win a Grand Slam final in any major since the Open era began, after Emma Raducanu's title run at the US Open in 2021.

The 24-year-old said her run in the French capital was "like a dream", moments after beating 25th seed Shnaider, who a day before eliminated world number one Aryna Sabalenka.

"I don't know what's going on, I just, I dunno what to say. I'm sorry, I'm just very happy," she added to raucous applause on Court Philippe Chatrier.

Chwalinska, appearing in her first main draw in Paris, has won nine matches across a three-week campaign at Roland Garros that started with three rounds of qualifying last month.

She admitted that her physical state was "not great" in the aftermath of her two-hour-10-minute semi-final win.

"I mean it's so challenging to play against the best players in the world day by day, but it's a Grand Slam so you just have to give your best day by day," she added.
"But I'm not complaining at all!"

Chwalinska had only won one match in her two previous Grand Slam appearances, at Wimbledon in 2022, and only just two tour-level matches on clay before Roland Garros.

En route to the last four, Chwalinska started out by downing Olympic gold medallist Zheng Qinwen in the first round before felling 23rd seed Elise Mertens, former world number three Maria Sakkari, hometown hope Diane Parry and 22nd seed Anna Kalinskaya.

Chwalinska is projected to climb to at least a career-high No. 21 in the rankings.

After edging the first set on a tie-break, the second frame was level until Shnaider requested a medical time-out for a back massage. After that stoppage, at 4-3, Chwalinska won the next three games to claim victory.

"Very proud of myself, what I achieved here," Shnaider said of her best performance so far in a Grand Slam.

"(Chwalinska) played unreal, and she definitely deserved this win today and to be in the final."

Earlier, Andreeva raced into her first Grand Slam final as she beat an erratic Kostyuk 6-1, 6-3.

The teenager, who had twice lost to Ukrainian Kostyuk this season, including the Madrid Open final, said she was "so focused that I could see those hairs on the ball" as she romped to victory in 76 minutes on court.

"I'm super happy with the way I played and then that I got revenge for Madrid final and I'm happy that I'm in my first-ever Grand Slam final," Andreeva said.

The 15th-seeded Kostyuk went into her maiden major semi-final on a 17-match winning streak on clay but quickly unravelled on Court Philippe Chatrier, where she had four days earlier eased past four-time French Open champion Iga Swiatek.

She finished the match with 34 unforced errors, telling her press conference: "Obviously not the greatest match from me today."

However, it has been a breakthrough clay-court swing for the 23-year-old, who can console herself with a win in Rouen, as well as a first WTA 1000 title in the Spanish capital.

Victory for Andreeva brought her tally of wins in 2026 to 35 -- the most on tour this season.

Doha: Qatar successfully hosted the decisive AFC Asian Cup Saudi Arabia 2027 qualifier between Lebanon and Yemen at Grand Hamad Stadium in Doha, with Yemen claiming a 2-0 victory to secure their place in the continental championship.

Originally scheduled to be hosted in Beirut, the final decisive qualifier for the AFC Asian Cup concluded on neutral soil in Qatar, jointly delivered by the Local Organising Committee for Football Events (LOC) and the Lebanese Football Association (LFA).

Fans from across Qatar and the region attended the match, which saw Yemen claim the final spot in Group E of the AFC Asian Cup Saudi Arabia 2027, joining South Korea, the United Arab Emirates, and Vietnam.

Yemen’s historic victory marks their return to the continental championship eight years after their historic debut at the 2019 edition.

The 19th edition of the AFC Asian Cup is set to take place in Saudi Arabia from 7 January to 5 February 2027.

The Lebanon v Yemen qualifier is the latest in a series of high-profile matches hosted in Qatar, reaffirming the country’s position as a trusted host for international sporting events.

With a capacity of 13,000, Grand Hamad Stadium has a distinguished record of staging FIFA World Cup qualification matches and served as the official base camp for the Brazil national football team during the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022.

The venue continues to serve as home ground of local club Al-Arabi SC.

أعلن الاتحاد الدولي لكرة القدم (الفيفا) اليوم الخميس، حظر إدخال زجاجات المياه القابلة لإعادة الاستخدام إلى الملاعب خلال مباريات كأس العالم، لأسباب أمنية، وذلك عقب تعديل طارئ على “مدونة قواعد السلوك في الملاعب”.

وأوضح الاتحاد، الذي كان قد سمح سابقا بإدخال الزجاجات البلاستيكية الشفافة القابلة لإعادة الاستخدام، أن القواعد المحدثة تقضي بمنعها بشكل كامل.

وامتد القرار ليشمل حظر إدخال أدوات أخرى مثل الزجاجات والأكواب والبرطمانات والعلب، تجنبا لمخاطر الإصابة في حال إلقائها داخل المدرجات.

وقال الفيفا في بيان لرويترز “يلتزم الفيفا بحماية صحة وسلامة اللاعبين والحكام والمشجعين والمتطوعين والموظفين، وقد جاء قرار حظر الزجاجات للحد من المخاطر والإصابات المحتملة”.

وأضاف “تُحظر الزجاجات الخارجية بالفعل في عدد من هذه الملاعب لأسباب تتعلق بالسلامة، ونعمل على تعميم هذا الإجراء في جميع ملاعب البطولة”.

وفي المقابل، أثار القرار مخاوف الجماهير بشأن التعامل مع درجات الحرارة المرتفعة، التي يُتوقع أن تتراوح في بعض الملاعب بين 26 و28 درجة مئوية، إلى جانب تساؤلات حول سهولة الحصول على مياه الشرب داخل الملاعب.

وأكد الفيفا اتخاذ تدابير للتخفيف من آثار الحرارة، مشيرا إلى أنه ينسق مع لجان المدن المضيفة والسلطات المحلية لتوفير حلول تشمل محطات رش المياه، والمراوح، ونقاط الترطيب، والخيام المبردة، وغيرها من الوسائل في محيط الملاعب.

وجاء في البيان “داخل نطاق الملعب، ستظل أسعار زجاجات المياه خلال كأس العالم 2026 متوافقة مع الأسعار المعتمدة في الفعاليات الأخرى التي تستضيفها هذه الملاعب”.

وستقام كأس العالم 2026، بمشاركة 48 منتخبا، خلال الفترة من 11 يونيو حزيران إلى 19 يوليو تموز، بتنظيم مشترك بين الولايات المتحدة وكندا والمكسيك، مع إقامة 104 مباريات، بزيادة عن 64 مباراة في النسخ السابقة، بعد استحداث دور إقصائي إضافي.

The post الفيفا يحظر استخدام الزجاجات القابلة لإعادة الاستخدام في ملاعب كأس العالم بسبب مخاوف تتعلق بالسلامة appeared first on كويت نيوز.

Madrid, Spain: Spain will play the first of two warm-up matches for the 2026 FIFA World Cup on Thursday night when it faces Iraq at Deportivo La Coruna's Riazor Stadium.

The friendly, Spain's only match on home soil before the squad flies to Mexico to meet Peru on June 9, will give coach Luis de la Fuente a chance to hand minutes to most of his players.

However, with Nico Williams, Lamine Yamal and Victor Munoz still working their way back from muscle problems, and Fabian Ruiz, Mikel Merino, David Raya and Martin Zubimendi only joining up on Tuesday and Wednesday after the Champions League final, Spain's lineup is unlikely to offer many clues as to who will start its World Cup opener against Cape Verde on June 15.

The state of the Riazor pitch is a concern after fans invaded the field on Sunday to celebrate Deportivo's promotion to La Liga, but De la Fuente was optimistic it would not be an issue.

"The news we have is that they have worked hard on it and the pitch will be in good condition, which is important. The key thing is that the pitch is in good shape for safety reasons and to be able to put on a good show," he said in an interview on Spanish radio station Cadena Ser.

De la Fuente repeated his confidence that Williams and Yamal will be fit for Spain's opening World Cup match and confirmed Merino would probably get some much-needed game time, as he has hardly played since suffering a bad ankle injury in early February.

He was less forthcoming on his goalkeeping choice between Unai Simon, David Raya and Joan Garcia.

"I know who my goalkeeper is," he said. "What's more, I could tell you today our starting 11 for Cape Verde, but we have to wait, sometimes football changes things for you, but I am sure about by starting 11."