A summary of sports events and sports persons, who made news on Tuesday
Sixteen-time Grand Slam champion Rafael Nadal continues to remain at the top as the latest men's world top 10 rankings remained unchanged.
The Spanish tennis maestro, who will be up against France's Lucas Pouille in the opening match of the China Open, currently holds 9, 465 points and maintains a comfortable lead of 1,960 over Roger Federer.
Briton Andy Murray holds on to the third place ahead of Germany's Alexander Zverev, Coatian player Marin Cilic and Serbian star Novak Djokovic.
Meanwhile, David Goffin of Belgium moved up to 11th spot after clinching the Shenzen Open title following a 6-4, 6-7 (5-7), 6-3 victory over Ukraine's Alexandr Dolgopolov in the finals.
The current ATP top 10 are
1. Rafael Nadal
2. Roger Federer
3. Andy Murray
4. Alexander Zverev
5. Marin Cilic
6. Novak Djokovic
7. Dominic Thiem
8. Grigor Dimitrov
9. Stan Wawrinka
10. Pablo Carreno Busta.
Chess player banned by Iran over hijab switches over to US
A young woman banned from the Iranian national chess team, allegedly for attending an international competition without wearing an Islamic headscarf, has joined the US team, an Iranian news agency reported.
According to AP, Dorsa Derakhshani refused to wear the hijab during a competition in Gibraltar in February, and has now joined the US national team.
Since the 1979 Islamic Revolution, it's a must for women to wear the hijab in public places.
Media reports stated on Monday that the president of Iran's chess federation, Mehrdad Pahlevanzadeh revealed that Dorsa had in fact changed her national federation to the United States, which was not unusual among chess players.
"She played for Iran only one time in 2014," he clarified.
At the February competition in Gibraltar, her brother Borna Derakhshani, also a chess player, was paired up by a computer against Israeli grandmaster Alexander Huzman.
Borna was banned from playing for Iran, and Dorsa was also banned for not wearing the hijab at that competition.
Shohreh Bayat, the general secretary of Iran's chess federation, said: "(Dorsa) Derakhshani has not become a member of the US national chess team, she just changed her federation to the United States."
Berbatov joins Kerala Blasters training
Ukrainian footballer and former Manchester United striker Dimitar Berbatov made his first appearance at a Kerala Blasters’ training session on Tuesday.
The Indian Super League team are currently in Spain for pre-season training and the boys were excited to have Berbatov in their midst.
Putting a video of the striker’s first day of training on their Twitter handle, Kerala Blasters FC wrote: “Let's get this party started! Our Hitman is here :)”.
The ISL will kick-off on November 17.
Kompany ruled out of Belgium's World Cup qualifiers
Defender Vincent Kompany has been ruled out of Belgium's upcoming World Cup qualifiers following talks with his club ManchesterCity, the national team's manager Roberto Martinez has said.
Kompany was initially called up to the squad to face Bosnia and Herzegovina and Cyprus but was sent back to his club having not fully recovered from a calf injury he suffered on national duty against Gibraltar in August.
Martinez denied having a club-versus-country row with City, saying they have been monitoring Kompany's progress and maintained "good communication" with the club.
"It's not a disagreement. We've got protocols and a way of working," Martinez told reporters on Monday.
"We're going to call up the players, the squad was announced on Friday and then we've got another two days to have a clear assessment of where the players are.
"That's the situation. Kompany hasn't been in the squad and hasn't been able to join in with the activity of the first team. So, it was clear... it was a very good communication with ManchesterCity."
Croatia's Kalinic out of World Cup qualifiers with thigh injury
Croatia striker Nikola Kalinic will miss their World Cup Group I qualifiers at home to Finland and away to Ukraine, the country's Football Association (HNS) said.
"AC Milan and the Croatian national team doctors have ruled Kalinic out of the two games after a scan showed a thigh muscle injury," the HNS said in a statement on Monday.
The Milan striker has joined a long list of casualties on the sidelines for Croatia's last two games, including midfielder Mateo Kovacic, forward Marko Pjaca as well as defenders Vedran Corluka and Tin Jedvaj.
Liverpool centre back Dejan Lovren will also miss Friday's clash with Finland but might be available for Monday's final game in Ukraine.
Wales forward Bale ruled out of World Cup qualifiers
Wales forward Gareth Bale has been ruled out of their crucial last two World Cup qualifiers against Georgia and Ireland due to a calf injury, The Football Association of Wales (FAW) said.
Bale, who missed Real Madrid’s weekend league game against Espanyol, had arrived with the rest of the Wales squad on Sunday and attended an awards dinner in Cardiff.
"But following dialogue with Real Madrid, Bale was sent for a scan and results confirmed that he wouldn’t be fit to feature," the FAW said in a statement.
"Barnsley striker Tom Bradshaw will now join up with the rest of the squad later today."
Bale is the most high-profile player in the Welsh side and the country's hopes of qualifying for next year's World Cup in Russia are still hanging in the balance.
Chris Coleman's team are second in Group D, four points behind leaders Serbia and one clear of Ireland in third. They play in Georgia on Friday and host Ireland the following Monday in their final qualifier.
Wales need to top the group to secure an automatic place in Russia but will go through to the playoffs if they finish second.
Bale had been doubtful after Real manager Zinedine Zidane reported the player was suffering a small calf strain.
The 28-year-old has scored 26 goals in 68 appearances for his country and was instrumental in their run to the semi-finals of Euro 2016.
The Croatians top the fiercely competitive group with 16 points from eight games ahead of second-placed Iceland on goal difference, while Turkey and Ukraine have 14 points each.
Bayern's Ribery suffers ligament damage
Bayern Munich forward Franck Ribery has torn the lateral collateral ligament in his left knee and will be sidelined for several weeks, the Bundesliga champions said.
The 34-year-old Frenchman, who was injured in Sunday's 2-2 league draw at Hertha Berlin, will have his knee put in a splint for a few weeks while he starts the rehabilitation process.
"We're sorry Franck has injured himself," Bayern CEO Karl-Heinz Rummenigge said on the club's website (fcbayern.com).
"We all wish him a speedy and successful recovery."
Britain's Evans banned for one year over failed doping test
Briton Dan Evans has been banned for one year after testing positive for cocaine, the International Tennis Federation (ITF) said.
Evans, 27, failed a doping test at the Barcelona Open this year and his ban has been back-dated to when the sample was collected on April 24.
"The ITF accepted Mr. Evans' account of how the cocaine got into his system and that he bears No Significant Fault or Negligence for the violation," the governing body said in a statement on its website.
Evans, who was ranked 50th in the world in June when he admitted failing a doping test, reached his first ATP Tour final this year in Sydney and has played for Britain in the Davis Cup.
