Digest

TABLE TENNIS

Chinese aces Fan, Sun stay atop rankings

China's Fan Zhendong and Sun Yingsha held onto their No 1 spots in the ITTF world rankings despite significant changes triggered by the expiry of ranking points from the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games on Tuesday.

Fan's compatriot Wang Chuqin rose to second place in the men's singles category, while Tomokazu Harimoto of Japan also moved up one spot to third. Chinese veteran Ma Long, who was ranked second the previous week, slipped to fourth.

Hugo Calderano (Brazil), Truls Moregard (Sweden), Liang Jingkun (China), Qiu Dang (Germany), Lin Gaoyuan (China) and Lin Yun-ju (Chinese Taipei) complete the men's top 10.

All the top five women's spots are occupied by Chinese paddlers — in descending order: Sun, Wang Manyu, Wang Yidi, Chen Meng and Qian Tianyi. Places six to 10 are Mima Ito (Japan), Chen Xingtong (China), Zhang Rui (China), Hina Hayata (Japan) and Han Ying (Germany).

Ranking points from several other major events, including the 2021 WTT Star Contender Doha, are also due to expire.

SOCCER

Key defender Wang ruled out of World Cup

Team China defender Wang Xiaoxue will sit out this summer's FIFA Women's World Cup after undergoing knee surgery, head coach Shui Qingxia has revealed.

Wang Xiaoxue was carried off the field after injuring her left knee in the 0-0 friendly draw against the Republic of Ireland in late February.

"She had surgery on March 6, which was a success," said Shui.

"She will definitely miss the World Cup as the anterior cruciate ligament tear she suffered usually needs at least eight to 12 months to recover from," Shui said.

Team China is considering veteran striker Wang Shanshan to fill the void left in central defense.

"Wang Shanshan is a good choice to defend against the European forwards who are strong and fast. We will have a try," said Shui.

"We need backups for that position, so I cannot rule out the possibility that she will play as a central defender."

China will face England, Denmark, Haiti in Group D at the World Cup.

Bayern 'back down to earth' after Cup exit

Captain Thomas Mueller said Bayern Munich had "come back down to earth" after a 2-1 German Cup exit to Freiburg on Tuesday.

Bayern beat Dortmund 4-2 on Saturday to return to the top of the Bundesliga as Thomas Tuchel made his bow as coach after replacing the fired Julian Nagelsmann, keeping the Bavarians on course for a treble.

But an injury-time penalty awarded for a handball by Jamal Musiala, was converted by Freiburg's Lucas Hoeler as the visitor grabbed its first ever victory at Bayern.

Bayern, a 20-time German Cup winner, has now been eliminated before the semifinal stage for three straight years since its treble-winning season in 2019-20.

" (We're) sitting here now with broken shards of something, for this year it's over again in the German Cup," said a "disillusioned and brutally disappointed" Mueller who scored two goals against Dortmund.

"Now we've emotionally come back down to earth — or a bit further down."

BASEBALL

MLB player salaries soar by 11 percent

A year removed from a labor lockout that postponed opening day, major-league players are enjoying their biggest salary spike in more than two decades.

The average Major League Baseball salary was up 11.1 percent to a record $4.9 million to start this season, the largest jump for the sport since 2001, according to a study by The Associated Press.

The surge follows a spending spree in the first offseason since players and owners agreed to a five-year collective bargaining agreement last March.

"It's a step in the right direction," said Texas Rangers shortstop Marcus Semien, part of the union's eight-member executive subcommittee who helped negotiate the CBA.

The New York Mets led the way with a $355 million payroll, $70 million more than the previous high for a season's start. Seven teams topped $200 million.

Oakland was last at $58 million — less than the combined salaries of Mets pitchers Max Scherzer and Justin Verlander, who tied for the major-league high of $43.3 million.

This year's percentage rise was the largest since a 13.9 percent jump in 2001.

BOXING

Retired Khan banned for doping in final fight

Retired British boxer Amir Khan has been banned from all sports for two years after testing positive for a prohibited substance following what proved to be the last fight of his career.

Khan, a former light welterweight world champion and Olympic silver medalist, returned a positive result for anabolic agent ostarine after his loss to Kell Brook in Manchester in February 2022, UK Anti-Doping said Tuesday.

Ostarine is a selective androgen receptor modulator that can help muscle growth and, according to UKAD, is designed to have similar effects to testosterone.

Khan, who announced his retirement three months after the fight, accepted a violation of anti-doping rules but said he had not intentionally ingested the substance. That explanation was accepted by an independent panel following a hearing in January.

His ban will expire on April 5,2024.

Reacting to the announcement, Khan — speaking in London — told Sky News he has "never cheated in my life".

"You can see by my performance against Kell Brook — I lost the fight. If I went in there and knocked Kell Brook out, it's different," he said.

Agencies