Reuters Sports Schedule at 0001 GMT on Saturday, May 17
Reuters sports schedule at 0001 GMT on Saturday: - - - - NHL Ducks host Kings in do-or-die Game Seven The Anaheim Ducks host the Los Angeles Kings in a decisive seventh game that will clinch the winner a Western Conference Final against the Chicago Blackhawks. (NHL-PLAYOFFS/DUCKS (PIX), expect by 0415 GMT/12:15 AM ET, by The Sports Xchange, 350 words) - - - - BASEBALL Darvish in action against the Blue Jays Japanese right-hander Yu Darvish, who retired the first 20 batters he faced on his last outing, takes the mound for the Texas Rangers against the visiting Toronto Blue Jays in one of 15 games on the Major League Baseball schedule. (BASEBALL-HIGHLIGHTS/ (PIX), expect by 0330 GMT/11:30 PM ET, by The Sports Xchange, 975 words) - - - - NORTH AMERICAN SPORTS Roundups of off-field developments in the major North American professional sports leagues. (expect by 0001 GMT/8:01 PM ET, by The Sports Xchange, 400 words) - - - - CYCLING Tour of California (to 18) Briton Wiggins in control Britain's Bradley Wiggins holds a 28-second lead over Australian Rohan Dennis going into Stage Six, a 152-km ride from Santa Clarita to Mountain High. (CYCLING-CALIFORNIA/, expect by 0300 GMT/11 PM ET, 300 words) - - Giro d'Italia (to June 1) Australian Matthews leads compatriot Evans Australia's Michael Matthews of the Orica team leads compatriot Cadel Evans (BMC Racing) by 21 seconds heading into Stage Eight. (CYCLING-GIRO/, expect by 1630 GMT/12:30 PM ET, 350 words) - - - - GOLF PGA Tour: Byron Nelson Championship (to 18) Irving, Texas Casey flirts with record nine hole total Briton Paul Casey came within one stroke of the PGA Tour scoring record for nine holes when he stormed home in 27 shots to finish he second round of the HP Byron Nelson Championship in Irving, Texas in an eight-way tie for second behind American leader Brendon Todd (GOLF-PGA/, moved, 400 words) - - European Tour: Spanish Open, Girona (to 18) Unheralded Belgian Pieters sets pace Little-known Belgian Thomas Pieters takes a one-shot lead over Dutchman Joost Luiten and Britain's Eddie Pepperell into the third round. (GOLF-EUROPEAN/, expect by 1700 GMT/1 PM ET, 300 words) - - - - SOCCER La Liga Real Madrid v Espanyol (1400) Barcelona v Atletico Madrid (1600) Valencia v Celta Vigo (2000) Champions Barca host leaders Atletico in La Liga showdown BARCELONA - Second-placed Barcelona host leaders Atletico Madrid in the first head-to-head La Liga title decider on the final day of the season in more than 60 years. (SOCCER-SPAIN/ (PIX, TV), expect by 1800 GMT/2 PM ET, by Tim Hanlon, 500 words) - - FA Cup final Arsenal favourites to beat Hull LONDON - Arsenal hope to pick up their first piece of silverware for nine years when they meet Hull City in the FA Cup final at Wembley Stadium. (SOCCER-ENGLAND/CUP (PIX), expect by 1800 GMT/2 PM ET, by Mike Collett, Sam Holden, Tom Hayward, 600 words) - - German Cup final Bundesliga winners Bayern chasing domestic double BERLIN - Bundesliga champions Bayern Munich, who are chasing the domestic double, will be without injured midfielder Bastian Schweinsteiger and forward Mario Mandzukic when they meet Borussia Dortmund. (SOCCER-GERMANY/CUP (PIX), expect by 2000 GMT/4 PM ET, by Karolos Grohmann, 500 words) - - Ligue 1 Monaco v Girondins Bordeaux (1900) Lorient v Lille (1900) Sochaux v Evian Thonon Gaillard (1900) Nice v Olympique Lyon (1900) Olympique Marseille v Guingamp (1900) Paris St Germain v Montpellier (1900) St Etienne v Ajaccio (1900) Bastia v Nantes (1900) Stade de Reims v Stade Rennes (1900) Toulouse v Valenciennes (1900) Lille need win to clinch third position PARIS - Third-placed Lille bid to secure a place in the Champions League preliminary round with victory at Lorient on the final day of the season. St Etienne, two points adrift in fourth spot, host Ajaccio. (SOCCER-FRANCE/ expect by 2100 GMT/5 PM ET, by Julien Pretot, 300 words) - - Serie A Udinese v Sampdoria (1845) Copy on merit - - World Cup warmup Netherlands v Ecuador Dutch unveil new formation Netherlands will unveil their new 5-3-2 system at the Amsterdam Arena as coach Louis van Gaal changes his formation ahead of next month's World Cup in Brazil. (SOCCER-FRIENDLY/DUTCH, expect by 2030 GMT/4:30 PM ET, 300 words) - - African Nations Cup qualifiers First round, first leg Malawi v Chad Namibia v Congo Sao Tome e Principe v Benin Mauritania v Equatorial Guinea Copy on merit - - African Champions League Esperance (Tunisia) v Entente Setif (Algeria) Copy on merit - - - - TENNIS ATP: Rome Masters (to 18) WTA: Italian Open, Rome (to 18) Nadal and Williams set for semi-final encounters ROME - Men's world number one Rafa Nadal meets Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov in the semi-finals of the Rome Masters while Serena Williams, the top-ranked women's player, takes on Serb Ana Ivanovic in the last eight of the Italian Open. (TENNIS-ROME/, expect by 1400 GMT/10 AM ET, by Terry Daley, 500 words) - - - - RUGBY Super Rugby round 14 Crusaders v Sharks, Christchurch (0735) Reds v Rebels, Brisbane (0940) Stormers v Force, Cape Town (1505) Cheetahs v Brumbies, Bloemfontein (1710) The seven-times champion Canterbury Crusaders can cement their title credentials with a sixth successive Super Rugby victory, against the table-topping Sharks in Christchurch. (RUGBY-SUPER/, expect from 0930 GMT/5:30 AM ET, we will have individual 200-word reports on all four games) - - - - HORSE RACING Preakness Stakes, Maryland, U.S. California Chrome ready to shine BALTIMORE - California Chrome has been given a clean bill of health for the race after a blister was discovered in the Kentucky Derby champion's throat. (HORSE RACING-PREAKNESS/, expect by 1815 GMT/2:15 PM ET, by Steve Ginsburg, 450 words) - - - - MOTORCYCLING MotoGP: France, Le Mans (to 18) Marquez aims to make it five poles in a row LE MANS, France - Honda's Marc Marquez, the world champion from Spain, is chasing his fifth pole position in five races to maintain his perfect start to the season. (MOTORCYCLING/FRANCE (PIX), expect by 1315 GMT/9:15 AM ET, 400 words) - - - - ATHLETICS IAAF Ponce World Challenge meeting, Puerto Rico - - - - (Asia Duty Editor: Ian Ransom)
