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PSG's Lee Kang-in Scores Twice in South Korea’s 3-1 Win against Bahrain in Asian Cup

South Korea's midfielder #18 Lee Kang-in celebrates with teammates after scoring his team's third goal during the Qatar 2023 AFC Asian Cup Group E football match between South Korea and Bahrain at the Jassim bin Hamad Stadium in Doha on January 15, 2024. (AFP)
South Korea's midfielder #18 Lee Kang-in celebrates with teammates after scoring his team's third goal during the Qatar 2023 AFC Asian Cup Group E football match between South Korea and Bahrain at the Jassim bin Hamad Stadium in Doha on January 15, 2024. (AFP)
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PSG's Lee Kang-in Scores Twice in South Korea’s 3-1 Win against Bahrain in Asian Cup

South Korea's midfielder #18 Lee Kang-in celebrates with teammates after scoring his team's third goal during the Qatar 2023 AFC Asian Cup Group E football match between South Korea and Bahrain at the Jassim bin Hamad Stadium in Doha on January 15, 2024. (AFP)
South Korea's midfielder #18 Lee Kang-in celebrates with teammates after scoring his team's third goal during the Qatar 2023 AFC Asian Cup Group E football match between South Korea and Bahrain at the Jassim bin Hamad Stadium in Doha on January 15, 2024. (AFP)

Paris Saint-Germain winger Lee Kang-in is used to being overshadowed by Kylian Mbappe at club level. Son Heung-min remains the icon for his national team South Korea.

But with two moments of individual brilliance against Bahrain on Monday, Lee took center stage at the Asian Cup. Not that he seemed comfortable under the spotlight after scoring twice in the second half to inspire South Korea to a 3-1 win in the Group E match.

“It's not just about my two goals. All the goals we score are very important for the team. I would just like to say and highlight that it is not about individual performance,” a modest Lee said afterward.

His coach Jurgen Klinsmann was also restrained in his praise of the forward.

“If you score two in the opening game of the Asian Cup for us you deserve to be man of match and (it was) a very good performance. But I have to keep him on the ground every day,” he said with a smile.

It feels like there is no danger of success going to Lee's head. And as members of the media crowded around after the post-match news conference, he was likely happy to see it was Klinsmann, the World Cup-winning former Germany striker, who was being mobbed with requests for selfies.

Lee was just trying to get back to the locker room at Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium.

Earlier he had scored two picture perfect goals to get South Korea off to a winning start in the competition the country hasn't won since back-to-back titles in 1956 and 60.

The game was tied at 1-1 when he took control, giving South Korea a 2-1 lead in the 56th-minute with a left-footed shot from around 30 yards (meters).

He was equally clinical as he scored his second goal 12 minutes later when showing sharp footwork and curling the ball into the bottom corner.

Hwang In-beom had given South Korea a first half lead with a goal in the 38th, but Bahrain equalized six minutes after the break through Abdullah Al Hashash.

“We knew it was not going to be easy to play Bahrain today and it turned out to be scrappy,” Klinsmann said. “We are very pleased to start with three points in the tournament, that is what really matters.”

Two-time champion South Korea hadn’t conceded a goal in its last six Asian Cup group games, spanning the past two tournaments. But that record was put under threat early on when an unmarked Mohamed Marhoon headed over from close range.

It was the first of a number of missed chances for both teams until Hwang’s opener.

South Korea’s Cho Gue-sung fired over with only the goalkeeper to beat and Lee Jae-sung also missed the target at the far post.

Bahrain’s Ali Madan shot wide after bursting into the box.

It was Hwang who finally delivered a precise finish as South Korea went ahead — sweeping a shot past Lutfallah after Lee's cross.

Bahrain continued to create openings in the second half and Komail Al Aswad forced a save from Kim Seung-gyu before Al Hashash struck with a side-footed finish from inside the box.

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Djokovic’s Knee Is Pain-Free at Wimbledon but His Movement Is Not Quite Where He Wants It

Serbia's Novak Djokovic returns the ball to Britain's Jacob Feamley during their men's singles tennis match on the fourth day of the 2024 Wimbledon Championships at The All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club in Wimbledon, southwest London, on July 4, 2024. (AFP)
Serbia's Novak Djokovic returns the ball to Britain's Jacob Feamley during their men's singles tennis match on the fourth day of the 2024 Wimbledon Championships at The All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club in Wimbledon, southwest London, on July 4, 2024. (AFP)
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Djokovic’s Knee Is Pain-Free at Wimbledon but His Movement Is Not Quite Where He Wants It

Serbia's Novak Djokovic returns the ball to Britain's Jacob Feamley during their men's singles tennis match on the fourth day of the 2024 Wimbledon Championships at The All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club in Wimbledon, southwest London, on July 4, 2024. (AFP)
Serbia's Novak Djokovic returns the ball to Britain's Jacob Feamley during their men's singles tennis match on the fourth day of the 2024 Wimbledon Championships at The All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club in Wimbledon, southwest London, on July 4, 2024. (AFP)

The good news, Novak Djokovic said, was that his surgically repaired right knee was pain-free at Wimbledon on Thursday.

The bad news, he knows, is that his movement, such a big part of his success, was not yet back to normal during a 6-3, 6-4, 5-7, 7-5 victory in the second round over Jacob Fearnley, a 22-year-old from Scotland who played college tennis in the United States — and that'll need to improve if Djokovic is going to contend for the title, the only reason he is back competing so soon after tearing his meniscus.

"The more matches I have, the better the chance I’ll have to feel more comfortable moving around and gain that speed, agility, change of direction — that freedom that I’m looking for, really. I had it in certain moments today, certain moments in the first match, but then it’s still not there," said Djokovic, who has won seven of his 24 Grand Slam trophies at the All England Club. "In a way, it’s expected and normal when you come back from surgery. The body’s trying to understand what’s going on."

When Fearnley, a wild-card entry ranked just 277th and participating in his first major tournament, grabbed the third set, a roar arose at Centre Court.

"I noticed they were probably more towards me in the crowd," Fearnley said. "That was pretty obvious."

Similar sounds came when he went ahead 5-4 in the fourth, particularly from a cheering section that included four teammates from his days at TCU in Fort Worth, Texas.

"It was really emotional," said Tomas Jirousek, who played with Fearnley on the Horned Frogs tennis team and was wearing a school sweatshirt.

Might this really turn into a tight contest? Might Djokovic, who hasn't reached a final of any tournament this season, really be forced to a fifth set? Of course not. Djokovic is too savvy, too superb at the biggest moments, and grabbed 12 of the last 17 points to reel off the final three games.

Still, the 37-year-old from Serbia, who has been wearing a gray sleeve on his knee, plans to watch some video of this match, the way he usually does, to get a sense of where he can get better for his next match, which will be against Alexei Popyrin on Saturday for a spot in the fourth round.

"I do watch specific moments where I thought I’ve done well or moments where I haven’t done so well, and just try to analyze that myself. Then, of course, with my team members," Djokovic said. "Draw some conclusions, take it to the practice court and work on it."

Fearnley, meanwhile, smiled while discussing the way his follower count on Instagram doubled to about 5,000. But he also vowed that whatever surge in popularity this performance on a much grander stage than he's used to, and against a much greater opponent than he's used to, is not "going to really affect me."

It was a big day for the locals, all-in-all, with several attention-grabbing matchups involving British players at the All England Club and national election going on around the UK.

"A great day for British tennis," Fearnley said, "and there’s no better place to do it than at home, at Wimbledon."

That included Andy Murray, a two-time singles champion at Wimbledon, teaming with his brother, Jamie, during a loss in men's doubles that began a farewell tour of sorts.

Murray, 37, has said he plans to head into retirement after playing at the All England Club — in men's and mixed doubles, but not singles, on account of recent back surgery — and the Paris Olympics.

In one all-British matchup won by the unseeded player, Harriet Dart came back to eliminate No. 32 Katie Boulter 4-6, 6-1, 7-6 (10-8). In another, Cam Norrie defeated No. 28 Jack Draper 7-6 (3), 6-4, 7-6 (6).

"He sort of knew all my patterns of play. I felt like his backhand was incredible today. Just wasn’t allowing me to do the things that I wanted to do," said Draper, who recently overtook Norrie as their country's highest-ranked man. "I felt like I wasn’t able to be brave enough."

No. 5 Jessica Pegula became the highest-seeded woman to lose so far, dismissed by Wang Xinyu 6-4, 6-7 (7), 6-1, and No. 7 Hubert Hurkacz exited the men's bracket when he needed to stop playing after injuring his right knee while diving to hit a shot late in the fourth set against Arthur Fils. Play was delayed for several minutes while a trainer examined then taped up Hurkacz's knee; when action resumed, Hurkacz immediately tried to dive for another volley, then couldn't continue.

Seeded winners included No. 1 Iga Swiatek — whose current unbeaten streak reached 21 — No. 4 Elena Rybakina, No. 10 Ons Jabeur, No. 11 Danielle Collins, No. 13 Jelena Ostapenko, No. 9 Alex de Minaur, No. 10 Grigor Dimitrov, No. 13 Taylor Fritz and No. 14 Ben Shelton, who won his second consecutive five-setter.