Reuters Sports Schedule at 0001 GMT on Saturday
Reuters sports schedule at 0001 GMT on Saturday:
SOCCER
Premier League (1500 unless stated)
Chelsea v Leicester City
Crystal Palace v Burnley
Huddersfield Town v West Ham United
Newcastle United v Swansea City
Watford v Southampton
West Bromwich Albion v Brighton & Hove Albion
Tottenham Hotspur v Everton (1730)
Chelsea, Spurs continue battle for top four
LONDON - Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur continue their bid for top four spots with home games against Leicester City and Everton respectively while the several teams resume their battle against relegation. (SOCCER-ENGLAND/ (PIX), by Neil Robinson and Ian Chadband, expect from 1700 GMT/12 PM ET, 500 words)
La Liga
Girona v Las Palmas (1200)
Real Madrid v Villarreal (1515)
Eibar v Atletico Madrid (1730)
Deportivo La Coruna v Valencia (1945)
Faltering Real meet Villarreal, Atleti take on Eibar
MADRID - Real Madrid face Villarreal at home looking for a victory to help revive their league form after falling 16 points behind leaders Barcelona, while second-placed Atletico Madrid visit Eibar without banned striker Diego Costa. (SOCCER-SPAIN/, expect by 1715 GMT/1.15 PM ET, by Richard Martin, 400 words)
Bundesliga (1430 unless stated)
Werder Bremen v Hoffenheim
Eintracht Frankfurt v Freiburg
Augsburg v Hamburger SV
Hanover 96 v Mainz 05
Stuttgart v Hertha BSC
RB Leipzig v Schalke 04 (1830)
Schalke look to cut gap on leaders Bayern
BERLIN - Second-placed Schalke visit Leipzig looking to cut the 14-point gap to leaders Bayern Munich who stretched their lead with a win at fourth-placed Bayer Leverkusen on Friday. (SOCCER-GERMANY/ (PIX), expect by 2200 GMT/5 PM ET, 400 words)
Ligue 1 (1900 unless stated)
Rennes v Olympique Marseille (1600)
Caen v Lille
Dijon v Metz
Montpellier v AS Monaco
Nice v Amiens SC
Troyes v Bordeaux
Monaco visit Montpellier in bid to cut gap at the top
PARIS - Second-placed AS Monaco, who trail leaders Paris St Germain by nine points, visit Montpellier while Olympique de Marseille in fourth travel to Stade Rennais as Ligue 1 action resumes after the winter break. (SOCCER-FRANCE/ (PIX), expect by 2100 GMT/4 PM ET, by Julien Pretot, 400 words)
TENNIS
Australian Open (15-28)
Nadal, Djokovic hold news conferences at Melbourne Park
AUSTRALIA - Top seed Rafa Nadal and six-times champion Novak Djokovic are among the leading players previewing the tournament during media conferences at Melbourne Park. (TENNIS-AUSOPEN/, expect throughout, by Ian Ransom, 400 words)
Sydney International
Kerber faces local hope Bartyin in Sydney final
SYDNEY - Former world number one Angelique Kerber looks for her ninth win in as many matches this year when she takes on local hope Ashleigh Bartyin the final. (TENNIS-SYDNEY/ (PIX), moved, 300 words)
Auckland Classic
Del Potro meets Bautista Agut in Auckland final
AUCKLAND - Juan Martin del Potro faces Roberto Bautista Agut in the Auckland Classic final as both seek a morale-boosting second title in New Zealand's largest city before heading to the Australian Open in Melbourne. (TENNIS-AUCKLAND/MEN, expect by 0600 GMT/1 AM ET, 300 words)
Hobart International
Champion Mertens plays Buzarnescu in Hobart final
HOBART - Holder Elise Mertens of Belgium takes on Mihaela Buzarnescu of Romania in the Hobart International final. (TENNIS-HOBART/WOMEN moved, 300 words)
GOLF
PGA Tour: Sony Open, Honolulu, Hawaii (to 14)
Spieth hoping for better luck in second round
Second round action from the Sony Open at Waialae Country Club on the Hawaiian island of Oahu. (GOLF-SONYOPEN/ (PIX), expect by 0430 GMT/11:30 PM ET, 400 words)
South African Open
Saddier shares lead with Paisley in South Africa
JOHANNESBURG - Adrien Saddier of France shares the lead with England's Chris Paisley at 13-under-par heading into the third round of the European Tour's South African Open.(GOLF-EUROPEAN/, expect by 1700 GMT/12 PM ET, 300 words)
EurAsia Cup (to 14)
Asia go into second day with one-point lead
KUALA LUMPUR - Asia go into Saturday's foursomes with a one-point lead over defending champions Europe on the second day of the biennial EurAsia Cup event at the Glenmarie Golf and Country Club. (GOLF-EURASIA/, expect by 1000 GMT/5 AM ET, 300 words)
CRICKET
South Africa v India, second test
South Africa host India on seamer-friendly wicket
PRETORIA - South Africa host India in the second of the three-test series at Centurion, with another seamer-friendly wicket expected at what is a favourite venue for the home side as they look to wrap up the series. (CRICKET-TEST-ZAF-IND/, expect throughout, by Nick Said, 400 words)
NBA
Rockets visit Suns, Cavs battle Pacers
The Houston Rockets aim for their third consecutive win when they visit the Phoenix Suns while LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers visit the Indiana Pacers in two of the nine games on the National Basketball Association's schedule. (BASKETBALL-NBA/HIGHLIGHTS, expect by 0430 GMT/11:30 PM ET, by Field Level Media, 500 words)
NHL
Canucks try to snap losing skid, Blackhawks face Jets
The slumping Vancouver Canucks try to snap a five-game losing skid when they visit the Columbus Blue Jackets while the Chicago Blackhawks host the Winnipeg Jets in two of the five games on the National Hockey League schedule. (ICEHOCKEY-NHL/HIGHLIGHTS, expect by 0430 GMT/11:30 PM ET, by Field Level Media, 300 words)
NORTH AMERICAN SPORTS
Roundups of off-field developments in the major North American professional sports leagues. (expect by 0100 GMT/8:PM ET, by Field Level Media, 500 words)
ALPINE SKIING
World Cup
Local hope Feuz takes on Norwegians Svindal and Lansrud
WENGEN, Switzerland - Switzerland's Beat Feuz is the best hope for a home win in the downhill at Wengen, while Norwegians Aksel Lund Svindal and Kjetil Lansrud are also among the favourites for one of the most challenging and high-profile races of the World Cup season. (ALPINE SKIING/MEN, expect at 1300 GMT/ 9 AM ET, By Brian Homewood, 300 words)
Women's World Cup
Vonn looks for first downhill win of the season
BAD KLEINKIRCHHEIM, Austria - American Lindsey Vonn will attempt to win her first World Cup downhill race of the season and her second in all disciplines. (ALPINE SKIING/WOMEN (PIX), expect at 1100 AM GMT, 7 AM ET, 200 words)
FIGURE SKATING
The Canadian Figure Skating Championship take place this week in British Columbia, headlined by a full slate of Olympic hopefuls. (FIGURESKATING-CANCHAMP/, expect by 0445 GMT/11:45 PM ET, 300 words)
WINTER OLYMPICS
We are moving a series of features and previews ahead of the Feb. 9-25 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea.
Shoma Uno
TOKYO - Shoma Uno first stepped on a rink aged five but with the rough-and-tumble of skating in his sights. Fifteen years later he is hard on the heels of his famed countryman, Yuzuru Hanyu, but still in his shadow. (OLYMPICS-2018-FIGS/UNO (PIX), expect by 1300 GMT/8 AM ET, by Elaine Lies, 600 words)
Wakaba Higuchi
TOKYO - Wakaba Higuchi makes her Olympics debut in an unusual rebuilding year for Japanese women in a nation of rabid skating fans. (OLYMPICS-2018-FIGS/HIGUCHI (PIX), expect by 1300 GMT/8 AM ET, by Elaine Lies, 700 words)
Patrick Chan
TORONTO - Patrick Chan hopes it will be third time lucky as he tries again for gold after settling for silver in 2014 - but the Canadian ruefully acknowledges his biggest enemy may be himself. (OLYMPICS-2018-FIGS/CHAN (PIX), expect by 1300 GMT/8 AM ET, by Steve Keating, 600 words)
GYMNASTICS
Former team doctor for U.S. Olympians faces sentencing
MASON, Michigan - Larry Nassar, a former team doctor for Olympians at USA Gymnastics, will be sentenced after pleading guilty in November 2017 to sexual assault charges. He pleaded guilty to seven counts of first-degree criminal sexual misconduct and faces at least 25 years in prison under a plea deal. He faces sentencing on similar charges in a different Michigan court on Jan. 31. (GYMNASTICS-USA/NASSAR (PIX, TV)
RALLYING
Dakar rally, stage seven
Stage seven of the Dakar Rally goes from La Paz to the Uyuni salt lake in Bolivia. (MOTOR-RALLY-DAKAR/ (PIX, TV), expect by 1800 GMT/1 PM ET, 300 words)
HANDBALL
Men's European championship (to 28).
ZAGREB - We will provide an end-of-day wrap from the Men's European Handball Championship in Croatia. (HANDBALL-EUROPE/, by Zoran Milosavljevic) (Asia Desk Editor: Greg Stutchbury)
