Reuters Sports Schedule at 1400 GMT on Friday, Jan 30
Reuters sports schedule at 1400 GMT on Friday: - - - - TENNIS Australian Open, Melbourne (to Feb 1) Djokovic to face Murray in final MELBOURNE - Top seed Novak Djokovic of Serbia beat defending champion Stan Wawrinka in five sets to reach Sunday's final against Britain's Andy Murray. (TENNIS-OPEN/ (PIX), moved, by Ian Ransom and Greg Stutchbury) - - - - SOCCER Asian Cup (to 31) UAE beat Iraq to finish third NEWCASTLE - The United Arab Emirates overcame 10-man Iraq 3-2 in an action-packed third-placed playoff to complete an impressive tournament for Mahdi Ali's side.(SOCCER-ASIA/ (PIX), moved,, 300 words) - - - Australia and South Korea fine-tune final preparations SYDNEY - Hosts Australia and South Korea hold news conferences on the eve of what promises to be a classic Asian Cup final. (SOCCER-ASIA/TEAM (PIX), moved, by Julian Linden and Nick Mulvenney, 400 words) - - African Nations Cup Nations Cup heads into knockout stage BATA, Equatorial Guinea - At least one of the leading contenders for the African Nations Cup title will be eliminated at the weekend when Algeria face the Ivory Coast in the headline match of four weekend quarter-finals. (SOCCER-NATIONS/ (PREVIEW, PIX), moved, by Mark Gleeson, 400 words) - - - - Bundesliga VfL Wolfsburg v Bayern Munich (1930) Leaders Bayern take on Wolfsburg as league resumes BERLIN - Leaders Bayern Munich can open up a 14-point gap if they beat second-placed VfL Wolfsburg as the Bundesliga resumes after the winter break. (SOCCER-GERMANY/ (PIX), expect by 2130 GMT/430 PM ET, by Brian Homewood, 400 words) - - Ligue 1 Paris St Germain v Stade Rennes (1930) PSG host Rennes aiming to put pressure on leaders Lyon PARIS - Second-placed Paris St Germain host Stade Rennes looking for a win that would take them within a point of Ligue 1 leaders Olympique Lyonnais, who visit AS Monaco on Sunday. (SOCCER-FRANCE/ (PIX), expect by 2130 GMT/4:30 PM ET, 300 words) - - La Liga Rayo Vallecano v Deportivo Coruna (1945) Copy on merit - - Dutch Championship FC Dordrecht v Heerenveen (1900) Copy on merit - - - - RUGBY Six Nations We will publish a preview package for rugby's 2015 Six Nations championship from 2000 GMT. The package will include: An overall preview (RUGBY UNION-NATIONS/PREVIEW) 600 words. Individual 400-word prospects story on each of the six competing countries (RUGBY UNION-NATIONS/ENGLAND etc) Sidebar on Ireland captain Paul O'Connell (RUGBY UNION-NATIONS/IRELAND-OCONNELL) Six players to watch (RUGBY UNION-NATIONS/STARS) List of previous winners (RUGBY UNION-NATIONS/WINNERS) and 2015 fixture list (RUGBY UNION-NATIONS/FIXTURES) - - - - NFL Seahawks, Patriots set for Super Bowl clash PHOENIX - We look ahead to Sunday's Super Bowl clash between the New England Patriots and defending champion Seattle Seahawks with a multi-part package that will include an overall preview of the National Football League's championship game, profiles on both teams, list of past winners, storylines to look for and players to watch. (NFL-SUPER/ (PREVIEW, PIX), moved, by Steve Keating, 700 words) SEE ALSO: (NFL-SUPER/SEAHAWKS-PROFILE, moved, 400 words) (NFL-SUPER/PATRIOTS-PROFILE, moved, 400 words) (NFL-SUPER/SEAHAWKS (FACTBOX), moved, 700 words) (NFL-SUPER/PATRIOTS (FACTBOX), moved, 700 words) (NFL-SUPER/WINNERS, moved, 450 words) (NFL-SUPER/STORYLINES, moved, 400 words) (NFL-SUPER/PLAYERS, moved, 400 words) - - GOLF European Tour: Dubai Desert Classic (to Feb. 1) McIlroy shoots 66 despite driving woes, Wiesberger leads DUBAI - Rory McIlroy's driving radar malfunctioned early in his opening round at the Dubai Desert Classic but recovered to shoot a 66, two strokes off the pace set by Austrian Bernd Wiesberger. (GOLF-EUROPEAN/, expect by 1500 GMT/10 AM ET, by Bernie McGuire, 400 words) - - - - CRICKET England v India, Perth, ODI tri-series England sink India to reach final against Australia James Taylor's calm 82 led England to a three-wicket voctory over India and a place in Sunday's final against hosts Australia. (CRICKET-TRI/ (PIX), moved, 400 words) - - - - BASKETBALL Barcelona and Panathinaikos home favourites in Euroleague BELGRADE - The Euroleague's twice former winners Barcelona entertain the premier club competition's 1999 champions Zalgiris Kaunas while Panathinaikos who have six titles, are at home to Galatasaray - - - - NFL Goodell holds court with Super Bowl media PHOENIX - NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell holds his annual Super Bowl news conference two days before the league's championship game between the New England Patriots and defending champion Seattle Seahawks. (NFL-SUPER/GOODELL (PIX), expect by 2330 GMT/6:30 PM ET, by Steve Keating and Simon Evans, 400 words) - - Patriots owner Kraft stands front-and-center in NFL spotlight New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft is one of the most visible faces of the NFL, guiding his once-moribund team to unparalleled success while assuming an influential role navigating the league's complex inner workings. (NFL-SUPER/KRAFT, expect by 1800 GMT/2 PM ET, by Steve Ginsburg, 500 words) - - Paul Allen flying high as Seahawks land back in Super Bowl SEATTLE - Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen has the knack of being in the right place at the right time and the Seattle Seahawks owner hopes that will be back in the Super Bowl winner's circle on Sunday when his team takes on the New England Patriots. (NFL-SUPER/ALLEN, expect by 1800 GMT/2 PM ET, by Bill Rigby, 500 words) - - Vegas casinos latest to join Seattle's '12th Man' PHOENIX - Las Vegas casinos will be among the Seattle Seahawks' faithful "12th Man" during the Super Bowl as most of the money wagered on the NFL's championship game is banking on a New England Patriots victory. (NFL-SUPER/GAMBLING (PIX), expect by 1800 GMT/1 PM ET, by Frank Pingue, 400 words) - - - - GOLF Technical focus bad for Snedeker's putting touch SCOTTSDALE, Arizona - If proof was ever needed for the average club hacker that even the very best players can struggle in golf, then look no further than at putting maestro Brandt Snedeker. (GOLF-PGA/SNEDEKER (INTERVIEW, PIX), expect by 1900 GMT/2 PM ET, by Mark Lamport-Stokes, 500 words) - - PGA Tour: Waste Management Phoenix Open, Scottsdale, Arizona (to Feb. 1) Palmer on top at weather-hit TPC Scottsdale, Woods struggles American Ryan Palmer set the early pace with a seven-under-par 64 at the TPC Scottsdale where former world number one Tiger Woods struggled to a 73 but nine players were yet to finish the opening round when play was suspended on Thursday. (GOLF-PGA/ (PIX), expect end-of-day lead by 0100 GMT/8 PM ET, 400 words) - - - - ATHLETICS Rupp to aim for fastest indoor two mile NEW YORK - American Olympic 10,000 meters silver medallist Galen Rupp headlines the Armory Track Invitational on Saturday, aiming for the world's fastest indoor two mile. The world silver medalist over 1,500m, Matt Centrowitz, features for the U.S. team in a distance medley against teams including Kenya and Ireland. (ATHLETICS-ARMORY/ (PREVIEW) , expect by 2200 GMT/5 PM ET, by Larry Fine, 325 words) - - - - NBA Hawks put long streak on line against Trail Blazers The Atlanta Hawks risk a franchise record 17-game winning streak when they collide with the Northwest Division leading Portland Trail Blazers, who have lost their last four road games, in one of nine games on the National Basketball Association schedule. (NBA-HIGHLIGHTS/ (PIX), expect by 0430 GMT/11:30 PM ET, by The Sports Xchange, 800 words) - - - - NHL Penguins aim for road win against Devils The Pittsburgh Penguins, who have been struggling of late on the road, visit the New Jersey Devils as they try to move closer to the Metropolitan Division-leading New York Islanders in one of five games on the National Hockey League schedule. (NHL-HIGHLIGHTS/ (PIX), expect by 0430 GMT/11:30 PM ET, by The Sports Xchange, 500 words) - - - - NORTH AMERICAN SPORTS Roundups of off-field developments in the major North American professional sports leagues. (expect by 0101 GMT/8:01 PM ET, by The Sports Xchange, 400 words) (Europe desk editor: Ed Osmond)
