Weekend Argus (Saturday Edition)
ON THIS DAY IN SPORT
June 6, 1997
CRICKET – England batsman Nasser Hussain celebrates after scoring a double-century in the first Test against Australia at Edgbaston.
Having bowled the visitors out for 118 in the first innings, England scored 478-9 before declaring, with Hussain scoring 207 and supported by Graham Thorpe (138) as they built a 295-run partnership which helped them win by nine wickets. Hussain would go on to captain England from 1999 to 2003.
June 6, 2000
SOCCER – Argentina striker Gabriel Batistuta is protected from fans by bodyguards before being unveiled as AS Roma’s new signing at the Olympic stadium in Rome.
In his first season with Roma, he helped the club to their first Italian Serie A title triumph since 1983, scoring 20 goals in 28 appearances.
The following season, he changed his shirt number from 18 to 20 to reflect the number of goals he had scored during the Scudetto-winning campaign.
June 6, 2001
BASKETBALL – Los Angeles Lakers centre Shaquille O’Neal goes up for a slam dunk as Philadelphia 76ers forward Matt Geiger attempts to block him in the first game of the NBA Finals.
The 76ers won the first match 107-101 in overtime with All-Star guard Allen Iverson scoring 48 points to end the Lakers’ 11-game play-off winning streak. O’Neal finished with 44 points and 20 rebounds.
The Lakers, however, bounced back in the series to win the next four games and clinch their second consecutive title and they would win it again in 2002 to accomplish the ‘three-peat’.
June 6, 2002
SOCCER – Samuel Eto’o takes his shirt off to celebrate his winning goal in
Cameroon’s 1-0 victory over Saudi Arabia in a World Cup group stage match at Japan’s Sapporo Dome.
Eto’o raced onto a through ball in the 66th minute and beat Mohammed AlDeayea in goal.
However, the African champions failed to progress to the next round, finishing third in their group.
Eto’o retired from international soccer in 2014, having helped Cameroon win two Africa Cup of Nations titles.
June 6, 2004
TENNIS – Gaston Gaudio of Argentina holds up the trophy after beating compatriot Guillermo Coria 0-6 3-6 6-4 6-1 8-6 in the French Open men’s final at Roland Garros in Paris.
Struck by cramp, Coria surrendered a two-set lead and played the fourth set at walking pace but recovered well to secure two match points at 6-5 in the final set, before Gaudio prevailed to clinch a hugely unexpected maiden Grand Slam title.
Gaudio also became the first man to win a Grand Slam tournament final after being bagelled in the opening set.
June 6, 2009
TENNIS – Russia’s Svetlana Kuznetsova kisses her trophy near the Eiffel Tower in Paris after beating compatriot Dinara Safina in the French Open women’s final. Safina was the top seed at the tournament and was looking to win her first Grand Slam title in her second consecutive final at Roland Garros.
But Kuznetsova, who beat second seed Serena Williams in three sets in the quarter-finals, won the final 6-4 6-2 for her second Grand Slam title.
June 6, 2010
MOTOGP – Honda’s Dani Pedrosa takes a curve at the Mugello Circuit during his Italian Grand Prix win in Tuscany. Leading from the start, Pedrosa finished four seconds ahead of Yamaha’s Jorge Lorenzo in second while Italian rider Andrea Dovizioso completed the podium.
Pedrosa finished second in the drivers’ championship that season as Lorenzo won his maiden world title.
June 6, 2013
ATHLETICS – Usain Bolt reacts after finishing second behind Justin Gatlin in the 100m race at the Rome Golden Gala Diamond League meeting.
American Gatlin, a bronze medallist at the London 2012 Olympics following his four-year doping ban, finished the race in 9.94 seconds to edge out Bolt by 0.01 seconds.
Bolt, 33, currently holds the world record in the 100m, 200m and 4x100m relay.
June 6, 2015
SOCCER – Barcelona players celebrate their Champions League title victory after defeating Juventus 3-1 in a pulsating final at the Olympic Stadium in Berlin. Goals from Ivan Rakitic, Luis Suarez and Neymar ensured a fifth European crown for Barca, who also won the La Liga and Copa del Rey titles to complete the treble in coach Luis Enrique’s first season at Camp Nou. It was their second treble, matching their 2008-09 feat under Pep Guardiola.
June 6, 2015
TENNIS – American Serena Williams celebrates winning a point in her dramatic 6-3 6-7(2) 6-2 win over Czech Lucie Safarova in the French Open final at Roland Garros. Having battled the effects of a nasty flu, the top-ranked Williams staved off a spirited comeback attempt from Safarova — who was playing in her maiden Grand Slam final — to secure a 20th major crown. Williams has since won two Wimbledon championships and the Australian Open to take her Grand Slam tally to 23.