MILAN: Inter Milan took another step towards the Serie A title with a 3-0 win over Cagliari at the San Siro on Friday, when second-half goals from Marcus Thuram, Nicolo Barella and Piotr Zielinski moved the hosts 12 points clear at the top.

Inter are on 78 points, with second-placed Napoli on 66 before they host Lazio while Cagliari remained 16th in the standings on 33 points, six above the relegation zone.

After a sluggish first-half performance, Inter took the lead through Thuram seven minutes after the break, Barella added a second and substitute Zielinski put the shine on the win with an added-time goal.

Inter had got their title charge back on track with back-to-back wins over AS Roma and Como after a three-game slump in which they collected two points, and a third successive win kept them in full control with five matches remaining.

“It’s not done yet, we’ve got to keep pushing and picking up points,” said Thuram. “We’re a team who likes to play together and hang out together, and you can see that on the pitch.”

Barella was reluctant to celebrate after scoring against his hometown club, but was hoisted onto the shoulders of Thuram as Inter enjoyed a goal which tightened their grip on the Scudetto.

“It’s been a year with more ups and downs, and that annoys me because I always want to be at my best,” Barella told DAZN.

“Now I feel good again and I’m trying to give everything as always. Sometimes you can have a mental block, but right now I’m enjoying the moment.”

Earlier on Friday, Como’s Champions League football suffered another blow with a 2-1 defeat at Sassuolo and they head into their cup showdown with Inter in downbeat mood.

Cristian Volpato’s brilliant lobbed finish at the end of a rapid counter-attack and a M’Bala Nzola strike, goals which came within two minutes near the end of the first half, gave Sassuolo victory in Reggio Emilia.

A second straight defeat leaves Como fifth, two points behind Juventus who host Bologna on Sunday night and with AS Roma one point behind in sixth ahead of their clash with Atalanta.

“We didn’t mark properly and our distribution wasn’t good, it just wasn’t our day,” said Como coach Cesc Fabregas.

AC Milan have also been given a reprieve, the seven-time European champions in third and five points ahead of Como but on a run of three defeats in their last four fixtures.

Published in Dawn, April 19th, 2026

KARACHI: The team bus was whistling and laughing after an 8-0 demolition. Four days later, the same players sat in a silent dressing room, a 1-0 loss to Mauritania playing on loop in their heads.

Pakistan’s first-ever FIFA Series campaign contained both extremes — a record-breaking win, a narrow defeat that stung more than any other, and a fighting 2-0 loss to hosts Ivory Coast.

For forwards Nadia Khan and Aqsa Mushtaq — two of the squad’s vital attacking voices — the tournament laid bare not just the team’s potential, but also the structural gaps that keep Pakistan from climbing higher.

“It was such a proud feeling for me, scoring and becoming the leading scorer for Pakistan,” Nadia told Dawn, reflecting on the moment she became the country’s all-time top scorer. “I felt proud for what I’ve done for my country. Going back to that moment, I was just so excited and wanted to celebrate with the team.”

That celebration came after an 8-0 dismantling of the Turks and Caicos Islands — a victory that surpassed Pakistan’s previous best (7-0 against the Maldives, 2022) and sent the squad into a frenzy. But football, as Aqsa put it, has a way of humbling you.

“The Mauritania loss hurt a lot more than the Ivory Coast one,” Aqsa told Dawn. “Because they were an unranked team and we had a good chance to beat them; and also because we created many chances and it was really hard to deal with the loss. [Whereas] Mauritania took their chance and scored. Sometimes that’s football and you have to deal with it, but I think it hurt a lot.”

Pakistan had six or seven clear chances that day. None went in. Mauritania had one real attack. They scored.

Aqsa rejected the idea that the problem was tactical or mental.

“I don’t think it’s a tactical issue or a mental one,” the 27-year-old insisted. “It’s sometimes just not your day. We just move on, we improve as a team, try to improve our finishing in training. Hopefully next time we can prove that we actually are good in front of goal because we have a lot of talent.”

Her own goal against Turks and Caicos — a pearler of a strike — was one of the best of her career.

“Just because it meant so much to me. I wasn’t able to score in the last event [Asia Cup qualifier] and I was eager to get this goal and prove that I am here and can really help the team.”

Nadia offered a different perspective on the Mauritania loss. She pushed back gently against her coach’s suggestion that overconfidence played a role.

“I believe that going into that game, and I believe the players will back me as well, we didn’t think we were overconfident,” the 25-year-old Nadia said.

“We went in obviously thinking we are confident, and we believe in our own abilities — but not overconfident as if to say we are arrogant or we think we are something that we are not. I go into every single game believing in myself, believing in my team-mates to get the best in each game.”

In the dressing room at halftime, trailing 1-0, she didn’t scream or despair. She pumped up each player.

“I like to build confidence,” she said. “Pumping each player up, that in itself is a big thing. Backing each player up, not letting them feel down, believing that we can go out and do it again. I bring out positive and inspirational little quotes so that they are ready for the next 45 minutes because anything can happen.”

That equaliser never came. But the lesson, both the players said, is that the team’s ceiling is higher than this tournament’s third-place finish suggests.

“The experience of this whole event has been amazing,” Nadia, who plays for English club Blackburn Rovers, said. “The quality of players we had — I think these are the best players we have ever had. We can do so much and go so much further. I can’t wait to show that in other tournaments.”

Yet both the players pointed to the same fundamental obstacle: not enough games. Aqsa was blunt.

“One thing I want to change about Pakistan women’s football right now is the amount of games and windows we have,” the England-born player said.

“It’s been a whole year since we last played Indonesia. It’s so important to play in every FIFA window if we can, every couple of months. Other teams have many FIFA windows to improve their abilities. We only have 10 days together. We will get there, but playing more regularly will surely help.”

Nadia expanded the argument. She distinguished between diaspora players — who have clubs and regular training abroad — and local players who lack those resources.

“To build football abilities we have to continuously be playing, not just by ourselves but as a team, so that we can link together and know how each of us plays,” she underlined. “But the opportunities we get through football in Pakistan are very little. [Therefore] we have to seize every opportunity we have.”

Her solution: regular camps for local players, even without tournaments.

“Mini camps for the local girls especially, so they can play regularly — even if they are only one or two weeks long every couple of months, coached by professionals within Pakistan. There are a lot of professional players in Pakistan capable of coaching. It’s crucial that the local girls train at a higher level.”

Asked to name the squad’s most underrated player, Nadia didn’t hesitate.

“Zehmena Malik,” she said. “Underrated in terms of she likes to keep to herself, lowkey, not too big on social media. But she is an amazing player and amazing person. She has immense knowledge of different aspects of the game. She should be in the limelight more.”

Aqsa, meanwhile, is already thinking about the next event for which her personal target is connection.

“We don’t get enough FIFA windows or international friendlies, so it’s hard to always connect with the team,” the attacking midfielder said. “But every camp we get better. From the last camp to this one, we have definitely improved. If we get more games and start improving how we play on the field, we will be an amazing team. I really believe it.”

The bus will stop whistling eventually. The losses will fade. But if Pakistan’s women are to turn moments into momentum, Nadia and Aqsa agree on one thing: they need to play — not just in tournaments, not just when the world is watching but regularly, relentlessly, together.

“Overall we had a really good contest [in Ivory Coast],” Aqsa said. “We just need to go with a good mindset and be positive for whenever we play next.”

Published in Dawn, April 19th, 2026

KARACHI: Lahore Qalandars produced a clinical performance to register a 32-run victory over Rawalpindiz here at the National Bank Stadium on Saturday night, effectively ending their slim playoff hopes in the HBL Pakistan Super League.

Fakhar Zaman’s sparkling 84 off 54 balls anchored a formidable total of 210 for four, before skipper Shaheen Shah Afridi and Haris Rauf dismantled Rawalpindiz’s top order and middle order with incisive bowling.

The win snapped a three-match losing streak for Qalandars and injected fresh life into their campaign, while Rawalpindiz slumped to a seventh successive defeat in what has been a nightmarish debut season so far.

After electing to bat first on a placid pitch that offered little assistance to bowlers, Qalandars got off to a blistering start.

Openers Fakhar and Mohammad Farooq unleashed an array of audacious strokes, capitalising on the short boundaries and lightning-fast outfield. Farooq, in particular, played with remarkable swagger, smashing 63 off 41 deliveries laced with five fours and as many sixes. His inside-out loft over extra cover off Mohammad Amir and the flat six off Asif Afridi stood out as shots of supreme class and timing.

Fakhar, rediscovering his mojo after a lean patch, complemented his partner perfectly. He reached his fifty with a trademark whip through fine leg and continued to deal in boundaries, punishing anything loose with his trademark slog-sweeps and powerful cuts. By the time the southpaw departed after hitting (11 fours and a six) in the 19th over, caught at deep cover by Dian Forrester off Amir, Qalandars had crossed the 190-run mark.

The opening pair added 121, setting a platform that allowed the middle order to play freely. Abdullah Shafique chipped in with 26 off 18, while Asif Ali provided the late flourish with an unbeaten 14 off six balls, including two towering sixes in the final over.

Chasing 211, Rawalpindiz needed a strong start but found themselves in early trouble against Shaheen’s fiery new-ball spell. The lanky left-armer removed Shahzaib Khan for seven in the third over, inducing a soft catch to Asif at cover.

Two balls later, he produced a stunning in-swinging yorker to trap captain Mohammad Rizwan lbw for nine on review — a massive blow on his 100th T20 appearance. Rizwan’s struggles continued, underscoring concerns about his recent form.

Yasir Khan provided a fleeting spark with a blistering 58 off 29 balls, including six fours and three sixes, but his dismissal — a soft catch to Fakhar at cover off Haris — triggered a collapse. Daryl Mitchell (11) and Sam Billings (seven) failed to build partnerships, falling to Haris and Sikandar Raza, respectively.

Usama Mir turned the screw with a fine spell of 2-29, including a beautiful googly that castled Forrester and an lbw decision against Cole McConchie. Haris, despite going for runs at times, claimed three wickets, including the dangerous Saad Masood for a valiant 54 off 26 balls (nine fours and six) in the penultimate over.

Saad’s enterprising knock, featuring some audacious boundaries and a half-century in just 21 deliveries, offered Rawalpindiz fans a rare moment of cheer. However, it proved too little, too late as the asking rate skyrocketed beyond 20 runs per over. Amir and Asif Afridi hung around till the end, but the target was always out of reach. Rawalpindiz finished at 178 for nine.

For Rawalpindiz, the defeat confirmed their elimination from playoff contention. Despite possessing talent in the auction, the side has struggled with execution, particularly in the middle order and with death bowling. Questions will linger over team selection and the inability to convert promising starts into match-winning performances.

Qalandars, on the other hand, will take confidence from this comprehensive display. With Fakhar back among the runs and their pace battery showing bite, they remain a dangerous proposition as the league phase enters its business end.

Scoreboard

LAHORE QALANDARS: Fakhar Zaman c Forrester b Amir84 Mohammad Farooq c Forrester b Amir63 Abdullah Shafique c Saad b Razaullah26 Sikandar Raza c Billings b Razaullah0 Asif Ali not out14 Charith Asalanka not out1 EXTRAS (B-4, LB-2, NB-1, W-15)22 TOTAL (for four wickets, 20 overs)210 DID NOT BAT: Haseebullah Khan, Daniel Sams, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Usama Mir, Haris Rauf FALL OF WICKETS: 1-121 (Farooq), 2-191 (Abdullah), 3-191 (Raza), 4-195 (Fakhar) BOWLING: Asif 3-0-29-0, McConchie 3-0-37-0 (1w), Amir 4-0-25-2 (2w), Razaullah 4-0-45-2 (4w), Saad 2-0-21-0 (1w), Mitchell 4-0-47-0 (3w, 1nb) RAWALPINDIZ: Shahzaib Khan c Asif b Shaheen7 Mohammad Rizwan lbw b Shaheen9 Yasir Khan c Fakhar b Haris58 Daryl Mitchell c Usama b Haris11 Sam Billings st Haseebullah b Raza7 Dian Forrester b Usama8 Saad Masood b Haris54 Cole McConchie lbw b Usama3 Razaullah c Farooq b Sams5 Mohammad Amir not out4 Asif Afridi not out4 EXTRAS (LB-6, NB-1, W-1)8 TOTAL (for nine wickets, 20 overs)178 FALL OF WICKETS: 1-16 (Shahzaib), 2-17 (Rizwan), 3-88 (Mitchell), 4-89 (Yasir), 5-100 (Billings), 6-110 (Forrester), 7-122 (McConchie), 8-134 (Razaullah), 9-174 (Saad) BOWLING: Shaheen 3-0-19-2, Asalanka 1-0-9-0, Sams 4-0-48-1 (1w, 1nb), Haris 4-0-43-3, Usama 4-0-29-2, Raza 4-0-24-1 RESULT: Lahore Qalandars won by 32 runs. MAN-OF-THE-MATCH: Fakhar Zaman

Published in Dawn, April 19th, 2026