Digest

SOCCER

Coronavirus causes League Cup chaos

West Ham manager David Moyes and two of his players contracted the coronavirus ahead of the Hammers' 5-1 English League Cup victory over Hull as the pandemic caused chaos on Tuesday.

Moyes, Josh Cullen and Issa Diop all left London Stadium after learning of the tests before kickoff and will self-isolate, with the trio said to be asymptomatic.

Also in east London, Tottenham's tie at Leyton Orient was postponed after Spurs' fourth-tier opponent suffered a COVID-19 outbreak.

West Ham's match went ahead as planned despite the virus tests, with assistant manager Alan Irvine taking charge of the Hammers."

At 20 past six we suddenly got some information from our doctor and head physio to say there were three positive tests, the manager and the two players," Irvine said.

"We'd had contact insofar as we were in the same area of the stadium as David. We were shocked by the news... we've been very particular about protocol."

Beijing blasts Qingdao to seal knockout berth

Beijing Guo'an secured qualification for the knockout stage of the Chinese Super League by thumping Qingdao Huanghai 5-1 in Suzhou on Tuesday.

Having let a three-goal lead slip in the teams' first Group B encounter, which ended 3-3, Guo'an was in no mood for a repeat and led 3-0 by halftime thanks to goals from Yu Yang, Jonathan Viera and Fernando.

Yaki Yen's 53rd-minute sending-off ended any hopes of a Qingdao comeback, with Spaniard Viera bagging his second of the night with a stunning freekick in the 56th minute, before Cedric Bakambu added the fifth in the 85th.

The only downside for the capital club was the sight of Renato Augusto limping off injured in the second half. The Brazilian was suspected of sustaining a muscle problem.

Guo'an now sits second in Group B, four points behind Shanghai SIPG with two games remaining and is assured of a top-four finish and a spot in the knockout section for the championship race.

Also in Suzhou, Tianjin Teda lost 1-0 to Hebei China Fortune to remain bottom of Group B.

BASKETBALL

Kobe's widow sues over alleged shared photos

Vanessa Bryant, the widow of the great Kobe Bryant, has filed a lawsuit against the Los Angeles County sheriff claiming deputies shared unauthorized photos of the crash that killed her husband, their 13-year-old daughter and seven others.

After the Jan 26 crash, reports surfaced that graphic photos of the victims were being shared. Vanessa Bryant was "shocked and devastated" by the reports, the lawsuit states.

The suit seeks damages for negligence, invasion of privacy and intentional infliction of emotional distress.

"This lawsuit is about accountability and about preventing this disgraceful behavior from happening to other families in the future who have suffered loss," Vanessa Bryant's attorney, Luis Li, said in a statement.

"The department formally refused Mrs. Bryant's requests for information saying it was 'unable to assist' with any inquiry and had no legal obligation to do so. It's now for a court to tell the department what its obligations are."

Donovan confirmed as new Bulls head coach

Billy Donovan will be the next head coach of the Chicago Bulls, the team announced on Tuesday.

He replaces Jim Boylen, who was let go in August after compiling a record of 39-84(.317) since he was named Chicago's head coach in December 2018.

Contract terms were not announced.

Donovan, who came in third in NBA Coach of the Year voting this season, mutually agreed to leave the Oklahoma City Thunder earlier this month after they lost Game 7 of the their first-round Western Conference playoff series to the Houston Rockets, 104-102.

The 55-year-old Donovan completed the five-year deal with the Thunder that he signed in April 2015.

Under Donovan, the Thunder were 243-157(.608) and made five consecutive trips to the playoffs. His winning percentage trails only Nick Nurse (.721), Steve Kerr (.709) and Gregg Popovich (.675) among active coaches.

Xinhua - Agencies