SPORTMonday 14 January 2019

PAGE | 05 PAGE | 06

Serena ‘ready to claim first Slam

as a mum’

De Kock, Steyn put South Africa on course

Qatar pummel North Korea 6-0AFC.COM AL AIN

Almoez Ali was the star of the show as he scored four and set up a fifth in Qatar’s 6-0 defeat of North Korea yesterday as Felix Sanchez’s side moved to the top of the Group E standings and into the knockout stage of the AFC Asian Cup UAE 2019 in Al Ain.

At Khalifa Bin Zayed Stadium, the Al Duhail striker, now the tournament’s leading scorer with five goals in two games, shone as his partnership with Akram Afif down the left destroyed the North Korean defence repeatedly while Boualem Khoukhi and Abdelkarim Hassan also put their names on the scoresheet.

Victory means Sanchez’s side have secured themselves a top two finish in the group and their win also ensures Saudi Arabia will progress to the last 16. The teams face off on Thursday to determine who will top the group, with Al Annabi’s huge win meaning a draw in Abu Dhabi will be enough to take pole position.

After labouring in the opening hour of their 2-0 win over Lebanon, Qatar were taking no chances against North Korea, with Sanchez restoring the influential Hassan to the starting line-up and the West Asian side possessed a greater level of urgency as a result.

Within nine minutes the Qataris were in front as Afif glided past Sim Hyon Jin before delivering a low cross to Ali that

he controlled with his right before stroking past Ri Myong Guk with his left.

Two minutes later and Qatar doubled their lead, with the threat this time coming down the right. Hassan’s sweeping ball found Hassan Al Haydos, the Qatar captain, and his low centre gave Ali the perfect opportunity to strike from close range. Once again he was clinical, netting for the third time in the tournament.

A string of yellow cards for Ri Un Chol, Jong Il Gwan and Ri Il Jin suggested North Korea were about to lose control, but eventually Kim Yong Jun’s side settled and almost pulled them-selves back into the game. Ri Un

Chol tried his luck from outside the area and his right foot drive only narrowly failed to find the top corner.

That, though, was to prove a brief bright spot in an oth-erwise disappointing half for North Korea. With just two minutes remaining, they found themselves further behind when Afif lifted the ball high over the advancing Ri Myung Guk and Khoukhi headed in from close range.

Qatar refused to relent as they sought to boost their goal difference ahead of their crucial meeting with Saudi Arabia, with Ali completing his hat trick 10 minutes into the second half with an easy finish after Afif’s

perfectly weighted through ball. The 22-year-old added

further misery for North Korea five minutes later when he linked up again with Afif, who led a rapid-fire counterattack for the Qataris before rolling the ball through to Ali and he smashed his shot across Ri Myung Guk and inside the far post.

Ali turned provider in the 68th minute when his pass allowed Hassan to storm through the North Korea defence and slot home Qatar’s sixth and the east Asian side’s misery was compounded in injury time when Jong Il Gwan was sent off for second bookable offence.

Asian Cup: Almoez scores 4 as Al Annabi storm into last 16

Qatar’s forward Almoez Ali during the 2019 AFC Asian Cup Group E against North Korea in Al Ain, yesterday.

Qatar’s Abdelkarim Hassan (foreground) leads Qatar’s attack against North Korea, yesterday.

Almoez etches his name into record booksAFC.COM AL AIN

Qatar hotshot Almoez Ali etched himself into the AFC Asian Cup record books yesterday as he scored four times to equal the record for the most goals netted by a player in a single match at the Continent’s premier compe-tition.

The 22-year-old Al Duhail SC forward was in rampant form throughout the AFC Asian Cup UAE 2019 Group E encounter with DPR Korea, scoring twice in the first half before adding two more after the break as Qatar recorded a 6-0 win.

Ali, who scored six times at last year’s AFC U23 Champi-onship in China, has now notched 11 goals in his last eight appearances at AFC compe-tition Finals, and is currently topping the goalscoring chart at the AFC Asian Cup’s 17th edition in the United Arab Emirates with five.

He holds the record jointly with Ali Daei from Iran (1996), Bahrain’s Ismaeel Abdullatif (2011) and Jordanian Hamza Al Dardour (2015).

Msakni ‘thankful’ to Qatar for Eupen stintARMSTRONG VAS THE PENINSULA

Striker Youssef Msakni is hopeful that his loan deal with Belgian club KAS Eupen will open a number of lucrative career options for him in the near future.

The 28-year-old is heading to Europe with Qatar Stars League (QSL) club Al Duhail loaning him to Eupen for a six-month period.

Speaking at a press con-ference at Aspire Academy yes-terday following his medical, the Tunisian international spelled out his priorities for the second half of the season.

“I want to perform at my peak and help my new club. I am also looking forward to playing in the Africa Cup of Nations in June for Tunisia which will be held in Egypt,” said Msakni, who was accom-panied by Eupen coach Claude Makelele.

“I am thankful to Al Duhail club and to Qatar for giving me an opportunity to play in Europe through Eupen,” he added.

Msakni has been playing in QSL since 2012 and finished as second top scorer in the league with 25 goals last season, one behind Al Duhail team-mate and Morocco international

Youssef El Arabi. He started his career at Stade Tunisien before switching to Esperance in 2008.

At Esperance he won four league titles and a Caf Cham-pions League trophy, before moving to Qatar.

Asked about the earlier offers from English clubs, Msakni said the ‘so called offers’ were all speculative ones.

“I am now looking forward to the challenge of playing in Europe. I am starting a new chapter,” said Msakni, who missed the 2018 World Cup in Russia due to injury.

Mskani has scored nine goals in 49 appearances for his country, including a hat-trick against Guinea which helped Tunisia qualify for the 2018

World Cup after a 12-year absence.

Asked as to whether age was on his side as he pursues his European ambitions.

Msakni said he has many years of football left in him and right now he is at the peak of his career.

Meanwhile, Eupen coach Makelele said Msakni has a lot

to offer to football and he can carry forward his European ambitions for many seasons.

“If you look at my career, I made the move to Real Madrid at 27 and then I moved to Chelsea at the age of 30 and played competitive football till the age of 38. So I think Msakni is not far behind the clock,” said the former French interna-tional, who ended his club c a r e e r w i t h P a r i s Saint-Germain.

Makelele was happy with his clubs preparations at Aspire Academy for the second half of the season.

“During the winter camp in Qatar, we worked hard on the physical, tactical part and various other aspects of the game. We are happy with way things went during the camp and hopefully it will be reflected in some positive results in the Belgian league,” said the 45- year-old, who started his coaching career as an assistant coach with PSG soon after his playing career got over in 2011.

Eupen, with 25 points, are currently placed tenth in the 16-team league with Genk leading with 48 points from 21 matches followed by Club Brugge, who have 41 from the same number of matches.

Youssef Msakni (centre) poses with KAS Eupen coach Claude Makelele (right) and a club official at Aspire Academy in Doha, yesterday.

AFP LONDON

Manchester United proved yesterday that their recovery under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is no flash in the pan, with Marcus Rashford pouncing to seal a 1-0 win in a thrilling contest against Tottenham.

The two sides went toe-to-toe in an open game but while both teams had mul-tiple chances, United goal-keeper David de Gea proved the difference, making a string of phenomenal saves.

Interim manager Sol-skjaer has installed Rashford as his number one striker and was richly rewarded when the 21-year-old scored the decisive goal in the 44th minute.

Paul Pogba sparkled for United, engaged in a per-sonal duel with Spurs goal-keeper Hugo Lloris for periods of the second half.

United’s victory is their fifth successive Premier League win under their tem-porary manager in a contest seen as his first major test since he took over from the sacked Jose Mourinho last month.

Earlier, Mauricio Pochettino’s Tottenham settled quickly into their fluid passing game at Wembley, enjoying the bulk of possession.

They went close to taking the lead when Harry Winks, seemingly unsure whether to shoot or cross,

fired the ball across the face of the United goal after being played in by Son Heung-min.

Minutes later the visitors had a chance to take the lead when Ashley Young’s cross fell to Jesse Lingard, who fired over from the corner of the six-yard box.

United, with Lingard, Anthony Martial and Rashford racing forward at every opportunity, looked dangerous and Martial forced Lloris into a smart low save with his legs.

The game lost a little of its frantic intensity midway through the first half.

Kane poked the ball into the net after being set up by Dele Alli but it was ruled out for offside.

Moussa Sissoko pulled up sharply with an apparent hamstring injury and although he returned to the pitch he was unable to con-tinue, being replaced by Erik Lamela. The decisive moment in the match came shortly before half-time.

Lingard cut out a careless cross-field ball from Kieran Trippier and nudged the ball to Pogba, who had time to look up and measure a raking cross-field pass to Rashford, racing

down the right. Rashford still had plenty to do but kept his nerve to fire right-footed past Lloris and into the far corner -- Lloris got fingertips to the ball but was unable to keep it out.

Tottenham came out of the blocks smartly after the restart and Kane looked certain to level from close range but De Gea saved bril-liantly with his left foot before pulling off a fine save to deny an Alli headed effort.

Ashley Young sent over an inviting cross that Pogba headed straight at Lloris and the Spurs goalkeeper had to be alert to tip over another

Pogba effort that came at the end of a long spell of United possession.

Spurs, roared on by a passionate home crowd, were building up a head of steam and Alli had a golden chance to equalise but De Gea was again equal to the task, saving with his legs.

The Spaniard produced yet another stunning save to keep out Toby Alderweireld before flying to his right to cling on to a Kane free-kick.

The win lifts United to level on points with fifth-placed Arsenal and six behind Chelsea.

06 MONDAY 14 JANUARY 2019SPORT

De Kock and Steyn put South Africa on courseAFP JOHANNESBURG

A century by Quinton de Kock and a double strike by Dale Steyn kept South Africa on course to complete a series clean sweep on the third day of the third and final Test against Pakistan at the Wanderers Stadium yesterday.

Set to make a daunting 381 to win, Pakistan were 153 for three at the close, needing another 228 runs.

De Kock made an imperious 129, equalling his highest Test score, before South Africa were bowled out for 303.

Imam-ul-Haq and Shan Masood got Pakistan off to their best start of the series, putting on 67 for the first wicket.

Both batsmen looked com-fortable on a pitch which played easier yesterday than the first

two days. But a change of ends brought immediate results for Steyn. Bowling from the southern, Corlett Drive end for the first time in the match, he had Imam caught behind for 35 with a superb delivery which moved away from the batsman just enough to find the edge.

Four overs later Steyn claimed the wicket of Masood after umpire Joel Wilson origi-nally gave him not out. A

successful review by South Africa showed a faint inside edge onto Masood’s thigh pad before the ball carried through to wicket-keeper De Kock.

Duanne Olivier dismissed Azhar Ali for the fourth time in the series when the batsman gloved a bouncer to De Kock.

Asad Shafiq (48 not out) and Babar Azam (17 not out) saw Pakistan through to the close with an unbeaten stand of 49.

De Kock and Hashim Amla were mainly responsible for South Africa posting a target likely to be beyond Pakistan’s reach. They came together on Saturday when their side were 93 for five, at which stage their lead was a modest 170.

While Amla patiently com-piled an innings of 71 off 144 balls, the left-handed De Kock played fluently as the pair put

on 102 for the sixth wicket. De Kock also shared an eighth wicket stand of 79 with Kagiso Rabada.

De Kock reached his fifty off

49 balls and his fourth Test century off 121 deliveries. He was finally caught in the deep, trying for a second successive six off leg-spinner Shadab Khan, after

facing 138 balls and hitting 18 fours and a six. Shadab finished with three for 41 while medium-pacer Faheem Ashraf took three for 42.

Captain Sarfraz Ahmed set a record for a Pakistan wicket-keeper by taking five catches in each innings.

His total of ten dismissals in the match was one better than the record previously shared by Rashid Latif and Kamran Akmal.

Pakistan only made one total over 200 in their first five innings in the series and had not batted for longer than 70.4 overs.

Steyn’s two wickets took his total in Tests to 433, bringing him level with Sri Lanka’s Rangana Herath and Stuart Broad of England in joint eighth place on the all-time Test wicket-takers list.

South Africa, 1st innings, 262Pakistan, 1st innings, 185South Africa, 2nd innings (overnight 135-5)D. Elgar c Sarfraz Ahmed b M. Amir ...............5A. Markram c Sarfraz Ahmed b M. Abbas .. 21H. Amla c Sarfraz Ahmed b Hasan Ali .........71T. de Bruyn c Asad Shafiq b F. Ashraf ............ 7Zubayr Hamza lbw b F. Ashraf ....................... 0T. Bavuma c Sarfraz Ahmed b S. Khan ........ 23Q. de Kock c Hasan Ali b S. Khan ...............129V. Philander lbw b M. Amir ........................... 14K. Rabada c Shadab Khan b F. Ashraf ........ 21D. Steyn not out ...............................................0D. Olivier c Sarfraz Ahmed b S. Khan .............1Extras (b2, lb6, nb1, w1) .............................. 11Total (80.3 overs) .............................. 303Fall of wickets: 1-24 (Elgar), 2-29 (Markram), 3-45 (De Bruyn), 4-45 (Hamza), 5-93 (Bavuma),

6-195 (Amla), 7-223 (Philander), 8-302 (De Kock), 9-302 (Rabada)Bowling: M. Amir 20-2-56-2, M. Abbas 18-3-73-1 (1w), Hasan Ali 17-1-83-1, F. Ashraf 14-3-42-3 (2w), S. Khan 11.3-0-41-3Pakistan, 2nd inningsImam-ul-Haq c De Kock b Steyn .................. 35Shan Masood c De Kock b Steyn .................. 37Azhar Ali c De Kock b Olivier .........................15Asad Shafiq not out .......................................48Babar Azam not out .......................................17Extras (lb1) .........................................................1Total (3 wkts, 40 overs) .....................153Fall of wickets: 1-67 (Imam), 2-74 (Masood), 3-104 (Azhar)Bowling: Steyn 12-1-37-2, Philander 10-3-28-0, Olivier 8-2-41-1, Rabada 10-1-46-0Match situation: Pakistan need 228 runs to win with seven wickets remaining

SCOREBOARD

Set to make a daunting 381 to win, Pakistan were 153 for three at the close, needing another 228 runs.

Action during Round 1 of Manateq Qatar National Sprint 2019 at Losail International Circuit on Saturday. RIGHT: Drivers and officials pose for a group photo after Round 1. Abdullah Al Khelaifi and Gilben Munoz won in Class 1 and Class 2 respectively.

Manateq Qatar National Sprint 2019

Japan ride their luck to advance at Asian CupAFP ABU DHABI

Genki Haraguchi smashed home a controversial penalty as former champions Japan scraped a 1-0 win over Oman to book their place in the last 16 of the Asian Cup yesterday.

Japan, who have scooped Asian football’s biggest prize on four occasions, enjoyed their share of good fortune against Oman in Abu Dhabi.

Haraguchi clipped the crossbar after just two minutes before Takumi Minamino fluffed a handful of golden opportunities during the match.

That profligacy almost came back to haunt the Blue Samurai as Oman flooded forward and Muhsen Al-Ghassani shaved the post from an acute angle.

But Haraguchi settled Japan’s nerves in the 28th minute, converting from the spot after he had appeared to go down easily under minimal contact from Oman captain Ahmed Al-Mahaijri.

Oman had extra reason to feel aggrieved when their own penalty claims were waved away just before half-time after Yuto Nagatomo looked to have handled a Salaah Al Yahyaei drive.

Japan reached the knockout stages of last year’s World Cup but they squeaked past Turk-menistan 3-2 in their opening Group F game and were poor against Oman, who almost equalised when Raed Saleh’s acrobatic late volley flashed wide.

But the Japanese remain unbeaten in seven matches since Hajime Moriyasu took charge after the World Cup and have now lost just one of their last 30 games at the Asian Cup, excluding penalty shootouts.

Japan are seeking to make up for their Asian Cup flop four years ago when they lost on pen-alties to the United Arab Emirates in the quarter-finals.

But they will need to find another gear if they are to threaten Iran, who are purring, and a South Korea side boosted by the arrival of Tottenham forward Son Heung-min.

De Gea produces masterclass as United edge Tottenham 1-0

Manchester United’s Marcus Rashford (centre) shoots past Tottenham Hotspur’s French goalkeeper Hugo Lloris (left) to score during the English Premier League match at Wembley Stadium, yesterday.

07MONDAY 14 JANUARY 2019 SPORT

Qatar down Egypt to open account at IHF WorldsFAWAD HUSSAIN THE PENINSULA

Qatar made a strong comeback at the IHF Men’s World Handball Championship, overcoming a spirited Egyptian team 28-23 to register their first victory in Copenhagen, Denmark, yesterday.

Al Annabi displayed signif-icant improvement in their second game of the tournament and were better both in defense and goal execution, than in their opening game, which they shock-ingly lost to debutants Angola 23-24.

The 2015 edition runners-up showed their intentions of securing full points right from the start and never conceded a lead against Egypt, who went down fighting to giants Sweden 24-27 after a gutsy show in their first match.

However, Egypt came even with the Asian Games champions on few occasions, adding excitement in the match.

With 20 minutes gone into the first half, Egypt levelled the

score 8-8 and were locked 11-11 again after 5 minutes.

But, Qatar blocked a couple of moves in the final five minutes and availed their opportunities to go into the second half with a 15-12 lead.

The coach Valero Rivera’s side looked even better in the second half particularly after Egypt levelled the score 17-17 for third time in the match. Qatar, then went on scoring five suc-cessive goals to build a strong lead to take things beyond their African rivals.

Egypt never posed threat after the lead with Al Annabi eventually collecting their first winning points with a 28-23 victory.

Qatar face Hungary today and will play against Sweden on January 16. They will meet Argentina in their final Group D match on January 17.

Meanwhile, in other matches yesterday, Macedonia overcame Bahrain with an identical score of 28-23 while Croatia reigned supreme over Japan 35-27.

Qatar’s Youssef Ali prepares to score during the IHF Men’s World Championship Group D match against Egypt at the Royal Arena in Copenhagen, yesterday.

England’s women’s football team set for training camp in DohaTHE PENINSULA DOHA

English women’s football squad is set to launch their training camp in Doha from today.

Coached by former England and Manchester United star Phil Neville, the English squad will be training at Aspire Academy until January 21, Qatar Football Association (QFA) announced yesterday.

England are conducting the training camp in prepa-ration for this year’s FIFA Women’s World Cup to be held in France.

One of 24 teams in the

tournament, England have been paired with Japan, Scotland and Argentina. Fourth-ranked England are one of the favourites for the World Cup title.

The English squad’s visit to Doha is part of the arrangement between QFA and the English Football Association (FA) last year in February.

Details released last week showed 28 players will be part of the squad in Doha.

England have won the FIFA World Cup four times and reached the quarterfinals on three occasions (1995, 2007 and 2011). They also reached the Europe Women’s Championship

in 1984 and 2009. In the last edition, England finished third in Canada. Doha remains one of

the most popular destinations for visiting clubs and nationals team for training purposes.

With Aspire Academy pro-viding for state-of-the-art facil-ities, around 10 different European clubs will be seen in action during this month.

French giants PSG arrived in Doha yesterday with KAS Eupen, Bayern Munich, Brugge FC and PSV Eindhoven have already landed in the Qatari capital.

Fans in Doha also a chance tho watch Iceland, Finland, Estonia and Iceland in action during a series of friendly matches played last week at the Khalifa International Stadium, a venue which will host some of the matches of 2022 FIFA World Cup.

Former England and Manchester United star Phil Neville, coach of the women’s team.

PSG arrive in Doha for winter campTHE PENINSULA DOHA

Paris Saint-Germain (PSG)arrived in Qatar yesterday for their four-day winter tour to prepare for an exciting second half of the season in Doha.

Over four days, the team will make use of the outstanding training facilities in the Aspire Zone and benefit from the coun-try’s ideal weather conditions.

The star-studded which has in its ranks some of the leading stars of the football world like Neymar, Kylian Mhappe and Edinson Cavani will have busy days in Qatar, on and off the field. Besides activation

workshops with Qatari sponsors, such as QNB the Parisian stars will also meet local fans.

The trip will also be an opportunity for the club to meet its local supporters. All of the players will be present and plenty of entertainment will be organised to treat the Paris Saint-Germain supporters in Qatar to some memorable experiences. In one of the high points of the tour, spectators will be invited to watch the players train at 5pm on 15 January in the Khalifa International Stadium in Doha, one of the venues for the 2022 World Cup.

This tour will also be an opportunity to inaugurate the

brand new Paris Saint-Germain Academy in Doha, which will be run year-round on the pitches of the Qatar Foundation.

“Qatar offers the ideal conditions to allow our team to prepare for the important fixtures that await in 2019. Our momentum has been very positive since the beginning of the season, and the start of the new year is an important time to bring the players and staff together so that they keep strengthening their bond. The Club is increasingly popular in the region.

“We are delighted to come here to meet and chat with our sup-porters. Many of our players will be back in Qatar in four years’ time

to play in the World Cup. The preparations are well underway. Aspire has become a major inter-national sports venue in a very short space of time, and the facil-ities currently being built will make Qatar the must-visit des-tination for all performance-ori-entated professional athletes,” Nasser Al Khelaïfi, Chairman and CEO of Paris Saint-Germain, said earlier.

Since 2012, the Qatar National Tourism Council (QNTC) and Paris Saint-Germain have formed a strategic

partnership to promote sports and leisure tourism in Qatar. QNTC has organised several tours for Paris Saint-Germain’s teams, including the 2014 and 2015 Qatar Handball Tour, the 2015 Qatar Ladies Tour and the 2013 and 2015 Qatar Tour.

Within the framework of this partnership, QNTC benefits from a constant presence in the Parc des Princes, where thousands of football fans can get a taste of Qatari culture and hospitality thanks to their promotion of Qatari culture and heritage.

PSG and Brazilian star Neymar checking into the team hotel upon arrival in Doha yesterday. BOTTOM: PSG goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon.

PSG and Uruguay striker Edinson Cavani in Doha yesterday.

Former Leeds striker Masinga dies at 49

AP LONDON

Phil Masinga, the former South Africa and Leeds United striker who scored the goal that took his country to the World Cup for the first time, died yesterday at the age of 49.

The South African Football Association said Masinga died in a Johan-nesburg hospital from a “cancer related disease” just a month after being diagnosed.

He was transferred last month from a hospital in his home town of Klerksdorp to the hospital in Johannesburg, SAFA said.

SPORT5:50PM 6:30PM

Live on beIN HD 7 Live on beIN HD 1

Milwaukee Bucks vsAtlanta Hawks

Dakar RallyHighlights

NBA RALLYING

LIVE ON

TUBE

05MONDAY 14 JANUARY 2019

I’m happy. I’m enjoying the time. Everything I’ve done last year made me be more relaxed. I try just to improve more in my game.

Simona Halep is feeling confident

in Melbourne

Australian Open: Ageless Federer sounds warning on eve of season’s first Grand SlamAFP MELBOURNE

Ageless Roger Federer said yes-terday he was in a confident mood and warned his rivals he was “playing good tennis” as he aims for a third successive Aus-tralian Open title.

The Swiss master enjoyed a successful Hopman Cup warm-up in Perth and knows that at even the grand old age of 37 he has a great chance of a record seventh Melbourne crown and 21st major victory.

“I’m playing good tennis. I’m confident that I think it needs a good performance by my opponent probably to beat me,” said the third seed, who opens his defence against Uzbekistan’s Denis Istomin in tonight’s match on Rod Laver Arena.

A buoyant Federer revealed he had enjoyed a successful break coming into the 2019 season.

“Throughout my career, I’ve been very lucky that in the off-seasons I never had any set-backs,” he told reporters at Mel-bourne Park.

“What I can say is the off-season was great for me. I think maybe it showed a little bit at the Hopman Cup already. Again, look, I’m playing tomorrow. We’ll see how it’s going to be here in Melbourne.”

Federer’s first-round opponent Istomin caused a massive upset in Melbourne two years ago when he knocked out defending champion Novak

Djokovic in the second round, outlasting the Serb over five sets.

“I think the focus really is on those early rounds, especially tomorrow,” said Federer, whose victory against Marin Cilic in last year’s final was his 20th Grand Slam title. “I know what Denis did to Novak. I watched basically the entire game a couple years ago when he beat Novak here.

“I’ve had some tough ones against him in the past. He can play well in fast courts, and that’s what it’s going to be a little bit here as well,” added the world number three, who has won all six previous encounters against Istomin.

“Depending on how you match up with your opponent, who is going to win the big points, the margins are so slim nowadays that I’m just not thinking too far ahead.

“I don’t think I should because I think that would be a mistake. I hope I can put myself in contention as the tournament goes deeper, but we’ll see.”

Federer has skipped the European clay court season in recent years as he tries to manage his workload to extend a remarkable career, which shows no signs of slowing.

He said he hadn’t made a decision on whether to play on clay this year and wasn’t sure why he had not suffered major injuries like Rafael Nadal, Djokovic and Andy Murray, who will retire this year with chronic hip pain despite being six years younger than Federer. “I think

you also need a little bit of luck. Maybe also the way I play tennis, maybe it’s smoother than the other guys,” said Federer, renowned for his flowing

movement around the court. “It just maybe looks that way. I work extremely hard in the matches as well. It just maybe doesn’t come across so much.”

Switzerland’s Roger Federer

attends a practice session

ahead of the Australian Open

in Melbourne yesterday.

Federer ‘shocked’, Djokovic ‘hurt’ by Murray decisionAFP MELBOURNE

Roger Federer admitted yesterday he was shocked that tennis was to lose “legend” Andy Murray this year while long-time friend Novak Djokovic said the bombshell news had “hurt” him.

Both paid tribute to the former world number one on the eve of the year’s first Grand Slam with Federer adding that the Scot should be “incredibly proud” of what he had achieved.

Murray on Friday admitted that his chronic hip injury had not been eased by surgery a year ago.

He then choked back tears and broke down as he revealed that he hoped to end his storied career at Wimbledon, but the Aus-tralian Open beginning today could be his last event because the constant pain was so bad.

“I was disappointed and sad, a little bit shocked, to know now that we’re going to lose him at some point,” Federer told reporters.

“But we’re going to lose everybody at some point. It’s just now that it’s definite,” he added, acknowledging that the era of the “Big Four” -- himself, Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Murray was drawing inexorably to a close.

“Of course, it hits us top guys hard because we know Andy very well,” the world number three said of the three-time Grand Slam champion and double Olympic gold medal winner.

“He’s a good guy, Hall of Famer, legend. He won everything he wanted to win. Anybody would substitute their career with his. He’s a great guy.”

World number one Djokovic played Murray in a practice match three days ago and said it was obvious that there were serious problems.

“You didn’t need to be on court to notice that he’s struggling, that he’s not moving as well as he normally does,” said Djokovic, 31, who is just a week younger than Murray.

“We’ve seen so many years of Andy Murray being one of the fittest guys on the tour, running around the court, getting always an extra ball back.

“I think to that extent, we are kind of similar. Our trajectory to the professional tennis world was pretty much similar,” added the Serb, who faces American Mitchell Krueger in the first round tomorrow.

“His birthday is one week before mine. We’ve grown together playing junior events. We played lots of epic matches.

“Obviously to see him struggle so much and go through so much pain, it’s very sad and it hurts me as his longtime friend, col-league, rival.

“I will carry beautiful memories from the court and off the court. It’s just sad.”

Murray has won Wimbledon twice and Federer hoped the Scot could keep playing long enough to be able to say goodbye on his favourite famous grass courts.

“Of course, I hope that he can play a good Australian Open and he can keep playing beyond that, really finish the way he wants to at Wimbledon,” said 20-time Grand Slam champion, who begins his Australian Open title defence today against Denis Istomin.

“It’s a tough one, but one down the road he can look back on and be incredibly proud of everything he has achieved.”

Murray was the first British man to win Wimbledon in 77 years and will be remembered for battling his way to world number one in 2016 during a golden era for men’s tennis alongside Federer, Djokovic and Nadal.

Murray faces a first-round clash Monday against in-form Spaniard Roberto Bautista Agut, seeded 22, who beat Djokovic on his was to winning the Qatar Open earlier this month.

In this file photo taken on July 10, 2016 Britain’s Andy Murray poses with the winner’s trophy on the clubhouse balcony after his victory over Canada’s Milos Raonic on the last day of the 2016 Wimbledon Championships at the All England Lawn Tennis Club in London. A tearful Murray on January 11, 2019, announced he would likely retire this year due to severe pain from a hip injury, saying the on-going Australian Open could be the last tournament of his glittering career.

Serbia’s Novak Djokovic practices in Melbourne yesterday.

Serena ‘ready to claim first Slam as a mum’REUTERS MELBOURNE

Serena Williams is ready to win her first Grand Slam title as a mother, having arrived at the Australian Open in her best condition since coming back from maternity leave, according to her coach Patrick Mouratoglou.

Frenchman Mouratoglou, who has guided Williams to the last 10 of her 23 Grand Slam titles, felt the American great was in “decent shape” when she reached last year’s finals at Wimbledon and the US Open.

However, her fitness had since gone up a notch and Margaret Court’s all-time record of 24 Grand Slam singles titles may well be in peril at Melbourne Park, he said.

“First of all, last year she made an incredible effort to come back in shape after having a baby and actually she came back in a decent shape quite fast,” Mouratoglou said in an interview.

“It was a big deal. She had a lot of medical issues after the delivery but she definitely was not 100 percent. She reached two Grand Slam finals. She was fit.

“I am knowing her now for a few years so I knew she could be much fitter but it’s just a question of time.

“And I think she’s fitter now. You can see it, it’s quite obvious when you see her on the court, how she moves.

“I think she came back to a very, very high level of fitness.

“So she’s ready. She’s ready to compete and when Serena’s ready to compete, she’s ready to win.”

While two months’ pregnant, Williams claimed a record seventh Australian Open title in the professional era in 2017 but missed out on her title defence while on maternity leave.

She returned to the tour at Indian Wells last year and had a roller-coaster season, forced to pull out of the French Open fourth

round with a pectoral muscle injury and was later beaten by Angelique Kerber in the final at Wimbledon.

She then revealed a personal battle with postpartum depression before closing her season in disappointment and acrimony, with a loss to Naomi Osaka in a US Open final marred by a huge row with the chair umpire Carlos Ramos.

Seeded 16th in Melbourne, Williams warmed up for the year’s first Grand Slam by winning all three of her singles matches at the Hopman Cup in Perth. She plays unseeded German Tatjana Maria in her first round match tomorrow.

Williams has a tough road to an eighth title, with world number one and French Open champion Simona Halep a potential quarter-final opponent followed by Osaka in the semi-finals if the seeds hold sway.

Mouratoglou said seedings and rankings would mean little if Serena brought her best form.

I have to go in and play aggressive myself, get a lot of returns back, serve well,

make her (Alison van Uytvanck of Belgium )

move. I felt comfortable

straightaway when I hit balls on that court yes-

terday. It was just a good feeling. Then, you see your photos all over the place,

which is cool. So it’s definitely

great to be back.”

Says Caroline Wozniacki as she relishes returning to the Australian Open as the

defending champion.

Novak Djokovic and rival Roger Federer are both in search of a record seventh Australian

Open title in Melbourne, and with it, a winner’s purse of $2.96m.

They are on opposite sides of the draw, making a final showdown a possibility between two of

the sport’s most successful players.

Djokovic has won 14 Grand Slams and earned more than $125m in prize money during his career while Federer has a record 20 Slam

titles and just over $120m in prize money.

First round losers in the main draw, for both men and women, will receive $54,143,

representing a 25 percent increase on the previous year.