14/10/2026

SPORTS WEDNESDAY | OCT 14, 2026

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Briton speaks out after requiring medical attention at Singapore GP Hamilton breaks silence

MATT RENSHAW top-scored for the sec ond time in the match and took a key wicket as Australia pushed for victory on the fourth day of the first Test against South Africa at Kingsmead yesterday. South Africa, set an improbable 421 runs to win, were 102 for four at the close. Renshaw followed his marathon 190 in the first innings with a brisk 82 in the second as Australia hurried to 314 for six in 58 overs before declaring. Opening bowler Josh Hazlewood struck twice before Renshaw, a part-time off-spinner, claimed his first Test wicket when he had South African captain Temba Bavuma caught off bat and pad at short leg. Australian captain Pat Cummins had Tristan Stubbs caught behind three overs later, leaving the world Test cham pions with an almost impossible task if Bavuma is to retain an unbeaten cap taincy record. Since being appointed in 2023, Bavuma has led South Africa in 12 Tests, achieving 11 wins and a draw. No other captain in Test history has had such a successful start to a captaincy career. South Africa have lost four Tests since his appointment but all happened with other players at the helm. One of the wins under Bavuma was in the World Test Championship final against Australia at Lord’s in 2025. While Renshaw’s first innings was notable for his patience and the way he left the ball, the big left-hander was aggressive yesterday. He hit seven fours and two sixes in facing 99 balls as Australia set out to score quickly to give themselves enough time to bowl South Africa out. “He’s (Renshaw) a well-loved guy, everybody knows his talent and we saw a glimpse of it today,” said teammate Beau Webster. “He’s quite destructive when he gets going. He hits the ball in some odd spots and he can be really hard to stop. “It’s an amazing achievement to get back to Test cricket from where he was in the last 12 to 18 months. Everybody knows how good he is.” The tone was set from the start of the day as Nic Maddinson, who struggled to a 33-ball duck, continued to attack the bowling as he had done at the start of the Australian second innings on Sunday. Maddinson needed just 19 balls to hurry from 17 to a Test-best 48 before he was bowled by a fast yorker from Anrich Nortje. Nortje was South Africa’s most impressive bowler. He struck Steve Smith on the helmet with a bouncer which prevented Smith from taking the field at the start of South Africa’s second innings, and also bowled Alex Carey. Keshav Maharaj said South Africa had again suffered “a couple of soft dismiss als” but said Aiden Markram had shown the application needed as he batted through to the close, scoring 45 not out off 115 balls. Maharaj admitted that South Africa’s 11-month gap since they last played a Test might have been a factor in the way some of the batsmen were dismissed in both innings. – AFP Renshaw puts victory in sight for Australia

L EWIS HAMILTON has broken his silence after falling ill following the Singapore Grand Prix on Sunday. The British driver was allowed to skip his media duties after reporting an illness. He was taken to the medical centre at the Marina Bay Circuit, with cameras catching Hamilton crouching down and looking at the floor. It was later confirmed Hamilton was suffering with a medical con dition,

reflect the pace we had in the car, and despite the result there are positives to take away. “Massive thanks to the fans in Singapore for the energy. I’ll continue to put the work in and come back fighting at the next race.” The mistake Hamilton is referencing refers to his decision to stay out when Ferrari had called both drivers into the pit. It cost Hamilton, with the ex-Mercedes driver struggling for grip later in the race. He remains third in the Drivers’ Championship standings with six races to go, but Max Verstappen is hot on his heels. Away from his own performance, Hamilton made headlines earlier in the weekend when he suggested organisers at the Marina Bay Circuit ought to change the track so that overtaking is easier. After the sprint race, he remarked: “I was just saying to Max, I think they need to change the track to maybe a longer straight somewhere in order to allow us to, for it to be truly a great rac ing circuit. “Because I think it has the potential to be a great racing circuit. It’s a great track to drive over a single lap in qualifying, but there literally just isn’t many… There’s like one place, I guess, really, that you could potentially get close to overtake. “But then in other places, like 16, the crest in the middle of the track, sparks come up because the track isn’t particularly flat. I don’t know if it’s for the rain or whatever it is, but I think there’s some adjustments that can be made to make this 100% a great circuit.” – Express Newspapers

despite fin ishing the race and placing sixth in Singapore.

As he’d skipped his media duties, there wasn’t an immediate update on Hamilton’s condition. However, the seven-time world cham pion has since broken his silence with a statement released on social media. He wrote on Instagram : “Yesterday wasn’t the result we were looking for, and that’s on me. At a track that’s difficult to overtake you need to try something different, and I chose a strategy that ulti mately didn’t deliver. “It’s a painful lesson to learn, but I take full responsibility for the deci sions I made. In this sport, not every call will work out. It’s about accepting when you get it wrong and how you move forward. “I’m grateful to the

Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton waves to the crowd during the drivers’ parade at the Singapore GP at the Marina Bay Street Circuit in Singapore on Sunday. – AFPPIC

team for the work they put in every weekend. P6 doesn’t

Infantino could pull off ‘Houdini’ act as critics struggle for candidate GIANNI INFANTINO could survive mounting criticism and secure re-election as Fifa president next March, with no heavyweight challenger emerging to threaten his bid for a fourth and final term, observers have told AFP . Former International Olympic Committee (IOC) marketing chief Michael Payne said the absence of a serious challenger was surprising. “If he is re-elected, which is looking increas ingly likely, it will redefine the term Houdini,” Payne said. investigated, raising the possibility of an appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS). Burns believes Uefa’s legal action in US courts, seeking access to documents relating to FFE, poses the greatest threat. Fifa is vigorously con testing the case.

The 56-year-old Swiss has lost support from several football associations following his pro posal to introduce private investment into the World Cup, which was swiftly abandoned. However, he retains crucial backing from Africa and South America. Infantino’s Fifa Forward Enterprise (FFE) plan, unveiled in July after the successful World Cup, would have established a commercial subsidiary to manage major events, including the tourna ment. With two prominent critics, Aleksander Ceferin and reportedly Victor Montagliani, seek ing re-election as heads of Uefa and Concacaf respectively, opponents are struggling to find a credible candidate ahead of the March election. Candidates must declare their intentions by Nov 18. Terrence Burns, a marketing strategist behind two successful World Cup hosting bids, believes Infantino remains firmly positioned to win. “He holds all the cards and always has,” Burns told AFP , adding that potential challengers risk appearing either performative or interested in negotiating deals.

“If the FFE was just a case of misguided proc ess and communications strategy, why hide its specifics?” Burns said, arguing that the lack of transparency would continue to undermine Infantino. Payne also warned that the absence of sup port from major football nations, including Spain, France and England, could deepen divisions. “Running a global sports federation requires unity – Fifa will be on the brink of civil war, and this is totally new territory for a sports governing body,” he said. Burns, however, expects the opposition even tually to reconcile with Infantino, arguing that football’s governing bodies would prefer unity unless serious criminal activity justified a split. He also sees little financial incentive for fed erations to remove the president, suggesting the controversy could ultimately strengthen Infantino’s grip on power. The outcome may therefore depend less on criticism than on whether his opponents can unite behind a credible challenger before the nomination deadline. – AFP

Lise Klaveness, president of the Norwegian Football Federation, has emerged as a prominent critic but has ruled out running. Even if she recon sidered, becoming the first woman to lead world football would be a formidable challenge. A source familiar with football governance told AFP that Kirsty Coventry’s successful IOC presidential campaign benefited from support within the organisation, whereas Fifa’s admini stration would likely oppose Klaveness. Infantino’s position is not entirely secure, how ever, with opponents pursuing legal action in the United States and filing complaints with Fifa committees. Klaveness and the Norwegian federation have raised three concerns, centred partly on Infantino’s relationship with US President Donald Trump. Josh Kushner’s venture capital firm, whose founder is the brother of Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, was expected to be the principal inves tor in the FFE plan. However, the source warned there was no guarantee the complaints would be properly