Manchester – Jurgen Klopp admitted he was frustrated by VAR’s failure to rule out Marcus Rashford’s goal as Liverpool were held to a 1-1 draw at Manchester United on Sunday, denying them a record-equalling 18th straight Premier League win.

Klopp felt United defender Victor Lindelof was guilty of a foul on Liverpool striker Divock Origi in the build-up to Rashford’s 36th minute opener.

Rashford eventually scored with a close-range finish and the goal stood despite a VAR check that appeared to show Lindelof catching Origi and making no contact with the ball, a decision that enraged Reds coach Klopp.

“They scored a goal which shows all the problems with VAR. Mr Atkinson let the game run I’m sure because there is VAR. For me it was a clear foul,” Klopp said.

“It’s a general problem. VAR looks and says ‘you decided like this’. But it was a foul.

“There was clear contact and Divock Origi goes down. They carried on and counter-attacked.

“I’m sure they (United) said it is not a ‘clear foul?’ That doesn’t work. That’s just not how it should be.”

Adding to Klopp’s VAR woes, Liverpool winger Sadio Mane had an equaliser disallowed by VAR moments later after he handled before scoring.

That looked like the correct decision and Klopp said: “Then we got a disallowed goal. I didn’t see it back but it was probably handball but everything just seemed to go against us.”

After a poor first half performance, Liverpool improved after the interval as United became more nervous.

The Premier League leaders, six points clear of champions Manchester City, equalised with five minutes left when substitute Adam Lallana tapped in after poor United defending.

“We were good enough for a point. We gave Man Utd an opportunity to play the way they wanted to play with five at the back. They were hardworking. Our orientation wasn’t good enough,” Klopp said.

“We felt under pressure when we weren’t. Then we scored the goal and was in charge of the game. The stadium was silent and people probably thought Liverpool would score but we take the point and move on.

“I don’t think Man Utd can play like this if the other team doesn’t have the ball as much. We play very often against a team like this. Maybe we can do better. One point is completely fine. We carry on.”

Cape Town – Former Proteas batsman Gulam Bodi has been sentenced to five years imprisonment for his role in 2015’s domestic spot-fixing scandal.

The news came out of the Commercial Crimes Court in Pretoria on Friday. 

According to a report on Cricbuzz, Bodi is appealing the sentence. 

After a lengthy investigation into the 2015 spot-fixing scandal, Bodi eventually pleaded guilty to eight counts of corruption before his sentencing was delayed due to a reported lack of legal funds from his side. 

Now 40, the left-hander was known for his aggressive hitting and went on to play two ODIs and one T20I for South Africa in 2007. 

His last domestic match for the Lions came in early 2015, and it is believed that he began to offer domestic players money for certain actions or results soon after he had retired from the game and while he was working as a commentator.

Alviro Petersen, one of the players who Bodi is believed to have approached, was present at the sentencing hearing on Friday. 

Gulam Bodi sentencing today at the Commercial Crimes Court in Pretoria.I see some media arrived. pic.twitter.com/O5WyKeBUYW

— Alviro Petersen (@AlviroPetersen) October 18, 2019

Good day for cricket!!!Gulam Bodi just been sentenced to 5 years in prison.He will apply for leave to Appeal and to extend bail his bail, pending the outcome of the appeal.

— Alviro Petersen (@AlviroPetersen) October 18, 2019

Antwerp – Former world No. 1 Andy Murray won his first ATP Tour match in Europe for 16 months when he beat Belgian Kimmer Coppejans 6-4, 7-6 (7/4) in Antwerp on Tuesday.

The Scot, who reached the quarter-finals in Beijing in September, is attempting to work his way back to form almost 10 months after a hip replacement.

Murray jumped to a 3-0 lead in the first set. Coppejans fought back, but at 5-4 Murray broke to 15 to take the set.

When the second set went to a tie break, the 25-year-old Belgian grabbed a 3-1 lead but Murray won six of the next seven points to win the match.

Murray, now ranked 243rd in the world, plans to make his Grand Slam comeback at the Australian Open in Melbourne in January.

Paris – Six of the eight places at the ATP Finals in London have been decided, following the Shanghai Masters on Sunday.

Stefanos Tsitsipas was the sixth player to qualify when he beat world No 1 Novak Djokovic in Shanghai.

The remaining two places are still up for grabs with Alexander Zverev and Matteo Berrettini under pressure from Roberto Bautista Agut, David Goffin and Kei Nishikori.

The finals take place in London from November 10-17.

Qualifying standings for ATP Finals as of October 13:

1. Rafael Nadal (ESP) 9,225 points QUALIFIED

2. Novak Djokovic (SRB) 7,945 QUALIFIED

3. Daniil Medvedev (RUS) 5,875 QUALIFIED

4. Roger Federer (SUI) 5,690 QUALIFIED

5. Dominic Thiem (AUT) 4,525 QUALIFIED

6. Stefanos Tsitsipas (GRE) 3,730 QUALIFIED

7. Alexander Zverev (GER) 2,855

8. Matteo Berrettini (ITA) 2,525

Cape Town – Cheetahs coach Franco Smith will look to sign off his spell in Bloemfontein on a high note on Friday by continuing their unbeaten run in the PRO14 against Munster, while the Southern Kings have emphasised the importance of rounding off their point-scoring chances when they meet Ulster in Port Elizabeth on Saturday.

The Cheetahs will go in search of their third successive victory when they take on Munster at the Stadium in Bloemfontein at 18:15 on Friday. The Southern Kings will be hunting their first win this season when they cross paths with Ulster on Saturday at 16:00.

Smith, who guided the Free Staters to two Currie Cup titles and the PRO14 playoffs in their opening season (2017/18), will wrap up his reign on a high note if his charges beat Munster, who are also unbeaten after two rounds, before handing over the coaching duties to Hawies Fourie.

Smith stood in during the opening rounds of the competition while Fourie recovered from an operation. His next coaching role will be as the new head coach of Italy’s national team.

“For me it was always about good people, who make good players,” said Smith.

“If rugby is that vehicle, then that was the one dealt to me. Through experience and the way I see the game, I was able to contribute over the last six years and create a platform.

“We wanted to play a good brand of rugby – a brand we could win and entertain with, and one people in the town and the stands could associate with. We wanted to create role models and heroes in society, and everyone I worked with here were exceptional people.

“They always went out there and gave their hearts on the field, and I never doubted their commitment. They measure themselves on a very high standard, and as a coach that is the biggest thing. There was always 100 percent commitment week after week even though we didn’t get the results.

“Regardless of what happens in the game, I can only thank them for buying into the game plan.”

Against Munster, Smith will come face-to-face with a coach he knows very well, South African Johann van Graan, whom he worked with at the Springboks in 2017. Despite Munster having 12 players at the Rugby World Cup, Smith believes the visitors have already shown how dangerous they are.

“At the beginning of the season, they are a bit more disrupted than Ulster was and they have a bunch of new names,” said Smith.

“Knowing Johann very well, I know he is trying to blood a lot of players because he will need them again during the Six Nations.

“I am sure he wants to test the depth in his squad, and there are some unknown names in their side, but they are a very organised and well-coached team. We know each other well, and he knows my philosophy.”

In Port Elizabeth, the Southern Kings will be looking to draw inspiration from the Cheetahs’ big win over Ulster last week when they meet at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium on Saturday.

But Southern Kings assistant coach Vuyo Zangqa says his charges need to find a way to convert the chances they create into points and become more clinical in their play.

“We looked at all three teams in our opening games, and when we looked at the Cardiff Blues, we knew we could beat them, but we fell short,” said the former Blitzbok speedster.

“We also knew Munster was going to be tough, but we were too slow to get out of the blocks.

“This week, we are hoping that the Cheetahs’ win against Ulster will give our boys a little more confidence and belief that we can do it. We analysed them and we know what they are going to bring, so we need to make sure we are more clinical in this game.”

Zangqa called for more focus and patience from his side to exploit the attacking opportunities that present themselves.

“At the end of the day the Southern Kings haven’t won a game yet,” said Zangqa.

“We don’t want to talk about last season, but we have seen some growth. We need to be more clinical because we were in the 22 four, five times and we didn’t convert, and it comes down to patience and focus. We took that forward in training this week, and hopefully we will get result this weekend.”