King Salman Patronizes King's Cup Final

Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz awards the trophy to al-Ittihad players after they are crowned Cup champions. (SPA)
Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz awards the trophy to al-Ittihad players after they are crowned Cup champions. (SPA)
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King Salman Patronizes King's Cup Final

Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz awards the trophy to al-Ittihad players after they are crowned Cup champions. (SPA)
Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz awards the trophy to al-Ittihad players after they are crowned Cup champions. (SPA)

Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz patronized on Saturday the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Cup final contested between al-Faisaly and al-Ittihad football clubs.

Hosted by the King Abdullah Bin Abdulaziz Sports Stadium in Jeddah, the final saw al-Ittihad crowned champions after defeating their rivals 3-1 in extra time.

Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques had arrived at the stadium with a number of officials.

After being greeted by a group of children, King Salman was received by Adviser to the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Prince Khalid al-Faisal and Chairman of the General Sports Authority Turki Al al-Sheikh.

He then viewed a photo exhibition, which included photographs from the rule of King Abdulaziz until his current reign.

Upon arrival at the main podium, the King was welcomed by the sports fans.

The closing ceremony for the tournament saw an artistic show and a performance by singer Mohammed Abdo.

After the match, Chairman of the General Sports Authority Turki bin Abdulmohsen Al al-Sheikh held a press conference about the game in which he expressed appreciation to King Salman for patronizing the cup final.



Kyrgios’ Return to Grand Slam Tennis Is in Doubt Ahead of the Australian Open

Nick Kyrgios of Australia and Novak Djokovic of Serbia (not pictured) hit a return against Michael Venus of New Zealand and Nikola Mektic of Croatia during their men's doubles match at the Brisbane International tennis tournament in Brisbane on January 1, 2025. (AFP)
Nick Kyrgios of Australia and Novak Djokovic of Serbia (not pictured) hit a return against Michael Venus of New Zealand and Nikola Mektic of Croatia during their men's doubles match at the Brisbane International tennis tournament in Brisbane on January 1, 2025. (AFP)
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Kyrgios’ Return to Grand Slam Tennis Is in Doubt Ahead of the Australian Open

Nick Kyrgios of Australia and Novak Djokovic of Serbia (not pictured) hit a return against Michael Venus of New Zealand and Nikola Mektic of Croatia during their men's doubles match at the Brisbane International tennis tournament in Brisbane on January 1, 2025. (AFP)
Nick Kyrgios of Australia and Novak Djokovic of Serbia (not pictured) hit a return against Michael Venus of New Zealand and Nikola Mektic of Croatia during their men's doubles match at the Brisbane International tennis tournament in Brisbane on January 1, 2025. (AFP)

Nick Kyrgios’ planned return to Grand Slam tennis at the Australian Open is in doubt after he sustained an abdominal injury and was forced to withdraw from an exhibition with Novak Djokovic this week.

The 2022 Wimbledon finalist, sidelined with wrist and knee injuries since the 2022 US Open, said in an Instagram post Wednesday that an ultrasound scan had revealed an abdominal strain and "unfortunately (I) won’t be able to play my good friend (Djokovic) this Thursday."

He said he’d be resting and doing everything possible to be ready for the Australian Open, which starts Sunday at Melbourne Park.

The mercurial Australian, who has become a popular commentator during his lengthy stints on the injured list, made his competitive comeback last week at Brisbane, where he played one singles match and partnered with Djokovic in two doubles matches.

Djokovic and Kyrgios won their opening doubles match, a crowd-pleasing, fist-pumping affair by both players at Pat Rafter Arena before a 6-2, 3-6, 10-8 loss to Nikola Mektic of Croatia and New Zealander Michael Venus.

Australian Open tournament director Craig Tiley remained confident Kyrgios would play at the year's first major.

"I think it’s just precautionary, that’s the word we’ve got from him," Tiley said Wednesday, responding to questions about the potential absence of the star Australian. "Nick’s not the only one not doing some of their pre-planned matches over the next few days. There’s no concerns ahead of the Open."