Anthony Joshua broke down in tears in the post-fight press conference in Jeddah. He had fought gallantly, come at one point to within a whisker of beating Oleksandr Usyk, but it wasn’t enough. And at this point that was all too much for him.
Usyk retained the WBA, WBO and IBF heavyweight titles with a split decision win over Joshua, the man he had taken the titles from 11 months earlier in London. But, unlike last time, this wasn't a case of Joshua coming up short, this was a case of the brilliance of Usyk.
Joshua fought a great fight. He tactics at times seemed to be working. But the story of the fight came down to two rounds – the ninth and the tenth.
The fight was in the balance when Joshua had a brilliant ninth round, rocking Usyk repeatedly, driving him around the ring. He seemed just one clean blow from victory.
But the minute’s rest at the end of the round did wonders for Usyk. After all the punishment Joshua had dished out to Usyk in the ninth round, Usyk did the same to Joshua in the tenth, as he landed a series of hooks that stiffened Joshua’s legs and had him gritting his teeth in an attempt to stay upright.
The fight was won right there. Joshua’s tank was emptied and try as he might, as brave as he was, he couldn’t match Usyk in the last two rounds on his tired legs. It was the difference between victory and defeat. If Joshua had won one of the last three rounds, it would have been a draw.
Frustration quickly grew for Joshua in the aftermath, as he seemed to attempt to present two of the championship belts to Usyk, only to be held back by Usyk’s security and then threw the belts out of the ring. He then walked out of the ring and was halfway back to the dressing room before returning.
He grabbed the ring microphone for a slightly bizarre rant, praising Usyk but justifying himself. It was as if all the snipes he had taken over the years from critics all caught up with him in one moment of failure.
But this was not a failure. He had just found his limit when an extraordinary boxer went higher.
Usyk was inspired by the war-torn nation behind him, it meant more to him than just self pride. He said afterwards that he had seen victory in Joshua’s eyes in the eighth round but couldn’t let his nation down. This was a victory for Ukraine at one of the most crucial times in its existence.
It was his remarkable talent that got him through, though. Whenever Joshua had success, Usyk was able to stick with him and then find something extra.
“Size doesn’t matter when you are fighting in the ring,” Usyk said. “That is when spirit counts.”
Back in England, Tyson Fury typically tried to play down Usyk’s performance on social media. Soon, at least, the on-off retirement talk should be in the past.
“I am sure that Tyson Fury is not retired yet, I am convinced he wants to fight me,” Usyk said.
“I want to fight him and if I am not fighting Tyson Fury, I am not fighting at all. Only God knows whether I will fight him or not, but all these gentlemen here around me, my team, they are going to help me.”
This will not be the end of Joshua, although his streak of appearing in 12 consecutive world title fights will come to an end.
With the spotlight shifting to an Usyk-Fury fight, it gives Joshua the chance to regroup and be more active. While Usyk’s dominance over two fights would make a trilogy fight unlikely, there will always be interest in a Fury-Joshua fight down the line.
As for Usyk, he underlined his position as a boxing master and he will go down as an all-time great, having previously held the undisputed world title at cruiserweight. All that in only 20 professional bouts.
The Facility’s Versatility
Between the start of the 2020 IPL on September 20, and the end of the Pakistan Super League this coming Thursday, the Zayed Cricket Stadium has had an unprecedented amount of traffic.
Never before has a ground in this country – or perhaps anywhere in the world – had such a volume of major-match cricket.
And yet scoring has remained high, and Abu Dhabi has seen some classic encounters in every format of the game.
October 18, IPL, Kolkata Knight Riders tied with Sunrisers Hyderabad
The two playoff-chasing sides put on 163 apiece, before Kolkata went on to win the Super Over
January 8, ODI, UAE beat Ireland by six wickets
A century by CP Rizwan underpinned one of UAE’s greatest ever wins, as they chased 270 to win with an over to spare
February 6, T10, Northern Warriors beat Delhi Bulls by eight wickets
The final of the T10 was chiefly memorable for a ferocious over of fast bowling from Fidel Edwards to Nicholas Pooran
March 14, Test, Afghanistan beat Zimbabwe by six wickets
Eleven wickets for Rashid Khan, 1,305 runs scored in five days, and a last session finish
June 17, PSL, Islamabad United beat Peshawar Zalmi by 15 runs
Usman Khawaja scored a hundred as Islamabad posted the highest score ever by a Pakistan team in T20 cricket
FA CUP FINAL
Chelsea 1
Hazard (22' pen)
Manchester United 0
Man of the match: Eden Hazard (Chelsea)
The Vile
Starring: Bdoor Mohammad, Jasem Alkharraz, Iman Tarik, Sarah Taibah
Director: Majid Al Ansari
Rating: 4/5
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White hydrogen: Naturally occurring hydrogen
Chromite: Hard, metallic mineral containing iron oxide and chromium oxide
Ultramafic rocks: Dark-coloured rocks rich in magnesium or iron with very low silica content
Ophiolite: A section of the earth’s crust, which is oceanic in nature that has since been uplifted and exposed on land
Olivine: A commonly occurring magnesium iron silicate mineral that derives its name for its olive-green yellow-green colour
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Islamophobia definition
A widely accepted definition was made by the All Party Parliamentary Group on British Muslims in 2019: “Islamophobia is rooted in racism and is a type of racism that targets expressions of Muslimness or perceived Muslimness.” It further defines it as “inciting hatred or violence against Muslims”.
The biog
Hobby: "It is not really a hobby but I am very curious person. I love reading and spend hours on research."
Favourite author: Malcom Gladwell
Favourite travel destination: "Antigua in the Caribbean because I have emotional attachment to it. It is where I got married."
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Mamo
Year it started: 2019 Founders: Imad Gharazeddine, Asim Janjua
Based: Dubai, UAE
Number of employees: 28
Sector: Financial services
Investment: $9.5m
Funding stage: Pre-Series A Investors: Global Ventures, GFC, 4DX Ventures, AlRajhi Partners, Olive Tree Capital, and prominent Silicon Valley investors.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
TUESDAY'S ORDER OF PLAY
Centre Court
Starting at 2pm:
Malin Cilic (CRO) v Benoit Paire (FRA) [8]
Not before 4pm:
Dan Evans (GBR) v Fabio Fogini (ITA) [4]
Not before 7pm:
Pablo Carreno Busta (SPA) v Stefanos Tsitsipas (GRE) [2]
Roberto Bautista Agut (SPA) [5] v Jan-Lennard Struff (GER)
Court One
Starting at 2pm
Prajnesh Gunneswaran (IND) v Dennis Novak (AUT)
Joao Sousa (POR) v Filip Krajinovic (SRB)
Not before 5pm:
Rajeev Ram (USA) and Joe Salisbury (GBR) [1] v Marin Cilic v Novak Djokovic (SRB)
Nikoloz Basilashvili v Ricardas Berankis (LTU)
What can victims do?
Always use only regulated platforms
Stop all transactions and communication on suspicion
Save all evidence (screenshots, chat logs, transaction IDs)
Report to local authorities
Warn others to prevent further harm
Courtesy: Crystal Intelligence
Alita: Battle Angel
Director: Robert Rodriguez
Stars: Rosa Salazar, Christoph Waltz, Keean Johnson
Four stars