Digest

BASKETBALL

Shenzhen's buzzer beater buries Xinjiang

The Shenzhen Aviators stunned the defending champion Xinjiang Flying Tigers with a thrilling buzzer-beating CBA victory on Sunday.

The game looked to be headed for overtime when a 3-pointer by Abudushalamu Abudurexit tied the score at 102-all with just 1.7 seconds on the clock.

However, Shen Zijie collected a long Gu Quan pass under the basket before netting the winning bucket for a dramatic 104-102 triumph for the host－Shenzhen's second on the bounce, having lost its opening four games.

Dwight Buycks made 29 points, with Gu adding 22 for last season's semifinalist Shenzhen, which is now 10th in the standings.

In Shenyang, the Liaoning Flying Leopards notched a 111-105 come-from-behind win against Stephon Marbury's Beijing Royal Fighters.

Forward Lance Stephenson led Liaoning with 30 points and seven rebounds, while Brandon Bass finished with 21 points, eight rebounds and five assists. Guo Ailun added 16 points, six rebounds and eight assists for the host.

SPEED SKATING

Wust best in Poland as China's Han struggles

Dutchwoman Ireen Wust won the women's 1500m at the ISU Speed Skating World Cup in Tomaszow Mazowiecki, Poland on Sunday.

Wust won gold in a track-record time of 1:56.627 ahead of Japan's Miho Takagi (1:57.176) and Russia's Evgeniia Lalenkova (1:57.283).

China's Han Mei was well off the pace as she failed to beat Russia's Daria Kachanova in a time of 2:00.334 that ranked only 18th among the 20-strong Division A field.

A day earlier, there was disappointment for Wust when she and her usually dominant Dutch cohorts had to settle for silver in the team pursuit, losing by 0.12 seconds to Russia. Canada claimed third, with China fourth.

GYMNASTICS

You narrowly fails to add to WC gold haul

Chinese gymnasts claimed four golds, one silver and one bronze at the FIG World Cup, which concluded on Sunday in Cottbus, Germany.

After topping the balance beam qualification standings, Li Qi could not maintain her momentum in Sunday's final, although her wobbly, hesitant performance was still good enough for third. Japanese 17-yearold Urara Ashikawa won the gold with 13.700 points.

Olympic champion Oleg Verniaiev of Ukraine prevailed on the parallel bars, topping the podium with a score of 15.400－the same as China's You Hao, who took second because of the lower difficulty level of his routine.

Japan's Hidetaka Miyachi delivered a breathtaking display to bag gold on the horizontal bar, with China's Hu Xuwei and Zhang Chenglong fifth and sixth respectively.

China's golds were all secured on Saturday－on the rings, pommel horse, women's vault and uneven bars.

GOLF

Rahm reigns in Dubai for $5m windfall

Jon Rahm is $5 million richer after capturing the European Tour's Race to Dubai title on Sunday by winning the season-ending World Tour Championship with a birdie on the final hole.

The world No 5 got up and down from a greenside bunker at the 18th hole to win the tournament by a stroke from Tommy Fleetwood, who also would have become European No 1 with a win on the Earth Course.

Rahm, who started the final round tied for the lead with Mike Lorenzo-Vera, led by six shots after birdying five of his first seven holes.

However, Fleetwood－playing one group ahead－birdied five of his last seven holes, with his tap-in birdie at No 18 giving him a 7-under 65 and tying for the lead with Rahm as the Spaniard was putting on the 17th green.

Rahm's birdie putt there came up a few centimeters short so he needed a birdie on the par-5 last to finish ahead of Fleetwood. His drive was perfect, his approach found the bunker, but he chipped out to four feet and rolled in for a 68 as Fleetwood watched in the scorer's tent.

SOCCER

Salah leads African player nominations

Trophy-holder Mo Salah is among 30 nominees named on Sunday for the 2019 African Player of the Year award.

Liverpool's Egyptian magician is one of 10 English Premier League stars to make the list, which includes his Reds teammates Sadio Mane and Naby Keita.

There are two each from Arsenal (Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Nicolas Pepe) and Crystal Palace (Jordan Ayew and Wilfried Zaha).

Riyad Mahrez (Manchester City), Wilfred Ndidi (Leicester City) and Mahmoud 'Trezeguet' Hassan (Aston Villa) complete the contenders from England's top flight.

A further 12 nominees come from other European leagues.