Australia's white-ball cricketers are trying to shut out the fresh sandpaper scandal causing unheralded infighting in the nation's cricket ranks.

DOHA — The men's national football team will try to end 2026 on a winning note when they face Qatar in their final friendly match of the year this week. The match between 32nd-ranked South Korea and world No. 60 Qatar at Abdullah bin Khalifa Stadium in Doha will kick off at 5 p.m. Tuesday (local time), or 11 p.m. Tuesday (South Korean time). This will be the last international match in 2026 for South Korea, as they try to pick up the pieces following a 3-2 loss to 55th-ranked Saudi Arabia last Friday. South Korea never led in that loss — their first against Saudi Arabia since 2005 — and missed a slew of opportunities in the second half to at least get a draw. After the match, Robert Moreno, caretaker manager for South Korea, said the team had to improve "in every aspect." Tuesday's match is Moreno's sixth and likely his last one for South Korea. The Spanish tactician was hired in early September to replace Hong Myung-bo, who had resigned at the end of June in light of an early World Cup exit. Instead of rushing to find a successor to Hong, the Korea Football Association (KFA) broug

There is a well-known saying, "comparison is the thief of joy." The meaning is self-evident, and just 24 hours after Korea lost 3-2 to Saudi Arabia, rival Japan defeated Brazil by the same scoreline. The saying does not quite apply, however, as there wasn’t much joy to be stolen anyway. It is a sober reminder of the gap between the Taeguk Warriors and the Samurai Blue. It was the second time in 13 months that Japan has defeated the five-time world champion and the first time in 21 years that Korea has lost to the team from Riyadh. It was a deserved defeat. Saudi Arabia was the better team for much of the match against the lackluster visitor. In last week’s column, I wrote that Korea’s results in this international break did not matter so much, but that was a mistake. Tuesday’s game against Qatar is now hugely important for the team because it is hugely important for coach Robert Moreno. It is the last of Moreno's six games that he has to prove himself. Of the five so far, there have been two wins, a draw and two defeats. Friday’s was the worst. Saudi Arabia started the game ran

Korea lost to Japan 5-1 in the final of a regional baseball tournament in Tokyo on Sunday, with its offense silenced and pitchers unable to keep the ball in the park. Korea managed only five hits while serving up two home runs in the final of the Asia Professional Baseball Championship (APBC) at Tokyo Dome, as it settled for its third consecutive runner-up finish behind Japan. Japan won the two previous editions of the APBC in 2017 and 2023. The APBC is for players aged 24 years and younger or those with no more than three years of professional experience. Teams can each take up to three players who are between 24 and 29 years old. In round-robin play, Korea lost to Australia 8-7 on Thursday and fell 9-5 against Japan on Friday. Korea then held off Taiwan 6-4 on Saturday, as those two countries, plus Australia, finished with an identical record of 1-2. Korea won out in a tiebreaking formula called Team Quality Balance, which looks at teams' runs scored and runs allowed, and it set up a rematch against the undefeated Japan in Sunday's final. Japan wasted little time taking the lead, as Mis

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There is a well-known saying, "comparison is the thief of joy." The meaning is self-evident, and just 24 hours after Korea lost 3-2 to Saudi Arabia, rival Japan defeated Brazil by the same scoreline. The saying does not quite apply, however, as there wasn’t much joy to be stolen anyway. It is a sober reminder of the gap between the Taeguk Warriors and the Samurai Blue. It was the second time in 13 months that Japan has defeated the five-time world champion and the first time in 21 years that Korea has lost to the team from Riyadh. It was a deserved defeat. Saudi Arabia was the better team for much of the match against the lackluster visitor. In last week’s column, I wrote that Korea’s results in this international break did not matter so much, but that was a mistake. Tuesday’s game against Qatar is now hugely important for the team because it is hugely important for coach Robert Moreno. It is the last of Moreno's six games that he has to prove himself. Of the five so far, there have been two wins, a draw and two defeats. Friday’s was the worst. Saudi Arabia started the game ran

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After an emphatic win in Perth on Friday, Australia’s young team heads to Adelaide full of confidence for the second game of the three-match ODI series, but the sandpaper scandal continues to hog the headlines.