Sirisak’s message is clear: winning is the only way the Kingdom can restore their dignity after Wednesday’s painful defeat to arch-rivals Vietnam.

“I encouraged the players in a meeting after the game. I told them to keep fighting,” said the 50-year-old. “We discussed the mistakes we made and we will be trying to achieve the best result we can against India. The team spirit remains the same.”

Unlike the game with Vietnam, Sirisak said several team changes should be expected, most notably the return of captain Teerasil Dangda, who had to sit out the previous game due to injury.

“We will change several players definitely,” Sirisak added. “Some still have injuries while others are readier in terms of their physical condition. Teerasil will be ready this time – he is 100 per cent now.”

After injury robbed him of two chances to win his 100th cap, in the China Cup and Wednesday’s game, the 31-year-old striker is expected to finally achieve the milestone.

He will be one of Thailand’s key strikers, as will young gun Supachai Jaided, as they seek revenge over an Indian side that shocked them with a 4-1 trouncing in January’s Asian Cup.

“India is a strong team that cannot be underestimated. We have to focus on the game to achieve a good result. We will have home advantage and fan support which shall benefit us,” said Buri Ram United’s Supachai.

India lost 3-1 to Curacao on Wednesday and coach Igor Stimac said he did not have high hopes for the Thailand game due to fitness concerns over many of his players.

“After a tough game with Curacao, it’s important for us to get players fresh for the next game. We come here to compete against top teams and it won’t be easy to play Thailand,” he said.

“Although we beat Thailand before it was a different match against a different coach [Milovan Rajevac]. I don’t expect much on Saturday. I don’t want to have a headache about more of my players getting injured.”

The third-place playoff will kick off at 3.30pm and can be seen live on Thai Rath TV 32. The final, between Curacao and Vietnam, will follow at 7.45pm.

The new graduate from University of California and her teammates are in the final stages of their preparation for the month-long event, which got underway with hosts France playing South Korea in the early hours of Saturday (Thailand time).

The Thai squad returns to France on Saturday after a week’s training in Belgium, where they posted one big win (9-0 against Kontich FC) and one heavy defeat (6-1 to the Belgium national team) from two warm-up games.

While Thailand will be making their second appearance in the quadrennial event, 22-year-old California-born Suchawadee will make her World Cup debut in the daunting clash against the odds-on favourites to retain their trophy.

She is no stranger to international football, however, having made her debut two years ago, scoring in a 6-0 rout of Palestine. She has maintained an impressive tally since, netting 12 times in just 17 games for the national team.

“We are almost 100 per cent ready now with just a few more days before the first game,” said the American Studies graduate, known as “Miranda” among family and friends. “We will get even better and be fully ready for the US.”

The primary focus for coach Nuengrutai Srathongvian has been to get her players at their physical peak as fitness will be key, with Group F matches against the USA, Sweden and Chile all following in quick succession

“The training is getting tougher, which will bring our team to a better direction,” Suchawadee said. “We are also working hard on tactics to make sure we will be entirely ready for the World Cup.

“We will try our best to make all Thai fans proud. If possible, I will try to score a goal in the game with the US,” the Thai striker vowed.

Thailand had three friendly games ahead of the World Cup. Apart from the matches in Belgium, they lost 3-0 to France in Orleans two weeks ago.

The Thai-USA game will kick off at 2am on Wednesday (Thailand time).

Thailand will then face world No 9 Sweden on June 16 and Chile on June 21. All the matches can be watched live on PPTV 36.

Panther Arto Team Thailand’s Nattapong Hortongkum and Nattavude Charoensukhawatana are the two local hopes taking part in the GT300 category of the Japan-based competition. Out of eight circuits, the Buri Ram stop is the only one taking place outside Japan.

The event is being staged for the sixth successive year in Thailand and this year motorsport fans will be served up a variety of Thai-Japanese entertainment activities, on top of the racing that will be staged throughout the weekend.

Sports Authority of Thailand governor Dr Gongsak Yodmanee said that over the five years the Chang International Circuit had hosted motorsport both foreign and local fans had responded extremely well to the events. Thousands of Thai and foreign fans, particularly Japanese, are expected to attend this year’s event.

“This event will help Thailand generate massive income for its economy, as well as improve the talent of Thai drivers taking part in the race,” Gongsak said.

“SAT is ready to support this event in order to push and improve the abilities of Thai drivers on a global stage, build a reputation for Thailand and promote sport as a way to create economic opportunities in the region.”

Tanaisiri Chanvitayarom, managing director of the Chang International Circuit, said that the highlight of Super GT would be a stunning line up of world-class race cars equipped with the latest technologies. The top-tier GT500 class features the most advanced technology from car manufacturers.

In addition to Japan’s top drivers, that race will also feature some of the world’s best drivers, including two other former F1 drivers: the 2009 British champion Jenson Button and Finland’s Heikki Kovalainen.

The GT300 class features supercars from leading car manufacturers around the world, while Thai fans are likely to cheer the Panther Arto Team Thailand, the only Thai team competing over the weekend.

“Besides enjoying the excitement of Chang Super GT Race 2019, fans can indulge in the various fun activities and entertainment such as the Pit Walk, where supercars worth billions will be on display, as well as meet and greet world-class drivers,” said Tanasiri.

Australia’s Ashleigh Barty

Barty reached her first final at the majors, coming back from a set and 0-3 down to defeat 17-year-old Amanda Anisimova 6-7 (4/7), 6-3, 6-3 in a rollercoaster semi-final.

Czech teenager Marketa Vondrousova also made sure of her place in a maiden final at the Slams by edging out Britain’s Johanna Konta 7-5, 7-6 (7/2).

Vondrousova is the first teenager in a Paris final since Ana Ivanovic in 2007.

Eighth seed Barty, 23, is the first Australian in a French Open final since Samantha Stosur finished runner-up in 2010.

“That was amazing, both good and bad,” said Barty who will rise to the top three in the rankings next week.

“It was the hardest thing that I ever had to do.

“I am really proud of the way I fought especially in the conditions which were cold and windy.

“Now I can’t wait for the final, it’s incredible.”

Both semi-finals got underway after accusations of sexism were made against French Open organisers who had decided to shift the matches away from the showpiece Court Philippe Chatrier.

The main arena had already been scheduled to stage the men’s semi-finals between Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic against Dominic Thiem.

The WTA said the decision, taken after Wednesday’s play was washed out and prompted by fears of more rain Friday, was “unfair and inappropriate”.

Former world number one Amelie Mauresmo of France said it was a “disgrace”.

Barty, 23, raced into a 4-0 lead with successive breaks as Anisimova, plagued with nerves, managed just one point.

The 17-year-old saved two set points in the sixth game to finally get on the board and retrieved a break for 2-5.

She broke twice again for 6-5 but faltered when she served for the set before securing the tiebreak.

Anisimova then led 3-0 in the second set, with Barty failing to win a point.

However, in a perfect capsule of the unpredictable semi-final, played out in front of a half-full Court Suzanne Lenglen, Barty claimed the next six games to level the tie.

The Australian, who once famously took a break from tennis to pursue a cricket career, even recovered from a break at 1-2 down in the decider.

She eventually held her nerve as Anisimova, bidding to become the youngest finalist in Paris since Martina Hingis in 1997, fell apart despite gamely saving five match points.

Over on a damp and windy Court Simonne Mathieu, world number 38 Vondrousova battled past 26th seed Konta who was bidding to become Britain’s first female French Open finalist since Sue Barker won the 1976 title.

Konta looked the stronger player for large periods of the match but a staggering 41 unforced errors proved costly.

The match was played in an atmosphere more associated with first-round ties rather than semi-finals — in front of a smattering of spectators on the 5,000-capacity arena.

Konta made a quick start as Vondrousova struggled with the wind and her nerves on serve — the Briton forging 5-3 ahead.

But the 28-year-old stuttered with a one-set lead in sight, missing three set points and then being broken when serving for the opener.

Vondrousova took full advantage, reeling off four straight games to make Konta pay.

Konta gathered herself, though, and took total control of the second set with an early break, moving 5-3 in front again.

But she tightened up once more when the pressure was on, dropping serve when one game from forcing a decider in a downpour of errors.

With light rain falling on Roland Garros, Vondrousova sealed victory by racing through the tie-break and into the final.

The football megastar — full name Neymar da Silva Santos Junior — went to the station in an attempt to defend himself, sitting in a wheelchair after spraining his ankle the night before in a pre-Copa America friendly that has ruled him out of the tournament.

As he made his way out through a media scrum after giving his statement to police, the star striker expressed gratitude to his fans for their support.

“I felt very loved,” he said.

The injury to the world’s most expensive player is a huge blow to host nation Brazil’s preparations for the South American continental championship, which begins on June 14.

Neymar hobbled off the field in the 20th minute of Brazil’s 2-0 win over Qatar in Brasilia on Wednesday. A large ice pack had been strapped to his lower right leg.

Neymar’s club, Paris Saint-Germain, tweeted Thursday that the player “suffered a severe sprain of the outer lateral ligament of his right ankle,” and will be “reassessed by the club’s medical department within the next 72 hours.”

The injury caps a troubled season on and off the field for Neymar, who faces accusations that he raped the woman, Najila Trindade Mendes de Souza, in a Paris hotel in May.

Neymar denies the claims and in an attempt to defend himself, published intimate WhatsApp messages and images of his encounter with Trindade on social media — without her consent, possibly breaking Brazilian law.

Such an offense carries a maximum five-year jail term.

– ‘Difficult moment’ –

Just before the late Wednesday game the SBT TV network aired an interview with Trindade in which she described suffering “aggression together with rape” at the hands of the player.

Trindade, who says she works as a model, acknowledged she initially liked Neymar and wanted to have sex with him.

The player paid for her plane ticket from Brazil and put her up in a Paris hotel.

Things changed dramatically at their first encounter, Trindade said. “He was aggressive, totally different than the boy that I got to know on the messages.

“Since I really wanted to be with him I said, OK, I’m going to try to handle this,” she said.

After some kissing and caressing “he started to hit me … then he began to hurt me a lot, and I asked him to stop because it hurt.”

According to Trindade, Neymar apologized, but then continued to hurt her while they had intercourse.

A video circulating on social media showed Trindade hitting Neymar in a hotel room and accusing him of assaulting her the day before.

In a sign of how significant a figure Neymar remains in Brazilian life, President Jair Bolsonaro offered his public backing for the player ahead of the match with Qatar, and later visited him at the hospital.

“I wish you a good and fast recovery,” Bolsonaro said on Instagram beneath a photo of him and Neymar.

Neymar posted a photo of his swollen ankle on Instagram with a message: “After the storm comes the calm.”

Sponsors however are not calm. Mastercard canceled a Neymar-themed ad campaign that was to be broadcast during the Copa America, Spanish media reported, while Nike expressed its “deep concern” on Monday.

Neymar’s injury also leaves a question mark over the future career of a player who cost Qatar-owned Paris Saint-Germain a world-record fee of 222 million euros ($248 million) when he moved from Barcelona in 2017.

Ankle problems ruled him out of the second half of the just-completed Ligue 1 season in France. When Neymar did finally return to the team, he played as PSG suffered a shock defeat to Rennes in the French Cup final — and afterward lashed out at a supporter in the stands.

Defeat means England’s long wait for a trophy since 1966 goes on and the Dutch thoroughly deserved their place in Sunday’s final against Portugal.

Marcus Rashford’s penalty gave England a first-half lead against the run of play, but Matthijs de Ligt made amends for his error in leading to the spot-kick to level 17 minutes from time.

England contributed to their own downfall in extra-time with a comedy of errors for both goals. John Stones and Ross Barkley were at fault as Kyle Walker’s own goal and Quincy Promes’s simple finish sent Holland into the final.

Southgate’s men were attempting to build on the success of reaching a first World Cup semi-final for 28 years, but their display showed much work is still to be done if they are to end their trophy drought on next summer at Euro 2020 with the semi-finals and final to be played on home soil at Wembley.

“I think it’s a really important game for us to reflect on,” said Southgate. “The next few days will be painful having got to this stage, but we will be stronger for the experience.”

Southgate defended his decision to leave out all seven of the Champions League finalists in his squad from Tottenham and Liverpool as captain Harry Kane and Jordan Henderson were left on the bench.

And the England boss also insisted his side must persist with passing the ball out from the back despite the criticism that is bound to come Stones and Barkley’s way.

“If we didn’t play that way we would never progress to be a top team,” said Southgate.

“That’s the way I believe they can play and should play.

“The errors were uncharacteristic, it was just poor execution and fatigue. I’ve got to not overreact to those things and support them in a difficult moment for everybody.”

– De Jong shines –

The Netherlands failed to even qualify for the last two major tournaments. However, the young talent that has seen a dramatic turnaround in their fortunes was in evidence with Barcelona-bound Frenkie de Jong outstanding in midfield.

“I heard he was player of the match tonight, well deserved,” said Netherlands boss Ronald Koeman.

“Most of the people are always looking what he is doing with the ball, how calm he is, but if you see defensive wise how many balls he is winning in midfield. It looks so easy, but it isn’t.”

De Ligt also looks set to leave Ajax with a host of top European clubs after his signature, but he had a moment to forget just after the half-hour mark.

The 19-year-old failed to control a simple pass and then chopped down Rashford, who picked himself up to slot home the resulting penalty.

However, De Ligt showed great character to make amends by powering home a header from a corner as the Netherlands’ pressure finally told.

“We dropped too deep and it took them to equalise for us to step it up again,” lamented Kane.

Just when there seemed only one winner, England produced their best move of the game as Stones, Ben Chilwell, Barkley and Raheem Sterling moved the ball from one end to the other before Jesse Lingard slotted home.

The celebrations were cut short, though, when the Manchester United midfielder was ruled offside by the finest of margins after a VAR review.

Memphis Depay and Donny van de Beek blazed over fine Dutch chances to win the game before extra-time, but the Netherlands finally took complete control in the extra 30 minutes.

England inflicted much of the damage themselves as Stones dallied on the ball and after Jordan Pickford made a great save to deny Depay, Promes’s follow-up deflected in off Walker.

Barkley’s underhit backpass then teed up a third for the Dutch as Depay squared for Promes to slot into an empty net.

The prize for victory will be a final against either Novak Djokovic, looking to hold all four Grand Slam titles at once for the second time, or last year’s runner-up Dominic Thiem.

It is the first time the top four seeds have all made the semis in Paris since Nadal, Federer, Djokovic and Andy Murray in 2011.

Here, AFP Sport takes a look at the men’s semi-finals:

Roger Federer (SUI x3) v Rafael Nadal (ESP x2)

Nadal leads head-to-head 23-15

— Federer has already surpassed expectations by reaching the semi-finals in his first appearance at Roland Garros since 2015, but faces a daunting task against Nadal if he is to reach the final.

Nadal leads the pair’s head-to-head on clay 13-2, holds a 91-2 winning record at Roland Garros and has won all five of his French Open matches against Federer.

But Federer is on a five-match winning streak against his old rival, and will be confident after dispatching an in-form Stan Wawrinka in the quarters.

“Like against any player, there is always a chance. Otherwise nobody will be in the stadium to watch because everybody already knows the result in advance,” said Federer.

The 33-year-old Nadal is also closing in on Federer’s record tally of 20 Grand Slam titles, knowing victory in Sunday’s final would draw him within two of the Swiss.

But 2009 champion Federer is showing no signs of slowing down at the age of 37, and is looking to become the oldest man to reach a major final since Ken Rosewall at the 1974 US Open.

“If I am able to play good tennis and play well with my forehand and backhand, I hope to put him in trouble. If not, I will be in trouble,” said Nadal.

Novak Djokovic (SRB x1) v Dominic Thiem (AUT x4)

Djokovic leads head-to-head 6-2

— World number one Djokovic is now potentially only two wins from becoming just the second man in history to hold all four Grand Slam titles simultaneously twice, but will face a formidable task against Thiem.

The Austrian fourth seed will be playing his fourth straight semi-final at Roland Garros and reached the final last year, only to lose to Nadal.

“I think every match I got better and better,” said Thiem, who heads into the match following back-to-back straight-sets wins over Gael Monfils and Karen Khachanov.

“From the third round on, it got a lot better. And for sure the match against Gael and also today was very good. I’m happy with the way I’m playing.”

Djokovic has sailed into his ninth French Open semi-final and 35th at the majors in total without dropping a set.

“Dominic is deservedly where he is, one of the top four guys, especially on clay. That’s where he’s playing his best tennis,” said the 2016 champion.

The Serbian leads their head-to-head 6-2, although both of Thiem’s wins have come on clay — including a straight-sets success in the 2017 French Open quarter-finals when Djokovic was the defending champion.

Thailand coach Sirisak Yodyadthai still refuses to concede that Vietnam rules Asean, despite Wednesday’s heart-breaking 1-0 King’s Cup defeat to their neighbours in Buriram.

After an intense and volatile clash at Chang Arena, marked by several hot-tempered clashes and five yellow cards, Nguyen Anh Duc broke Thai resistance in injury time with a header that OH Leuven goalkeeper Kawin Thamsatchanan was unable to stop.

Asked if he accepted that Vietnam were now the No 1 football nation, Sirisak maintained that his players had every bit as much talent as those lining up for the AFF Suzuki Cup champions.

“We still had more possession of the ball in the second half but in football victory is decided on the side that scores, which is something Vietnam did,” said Sirisak, who has been in charge of the team since the Asian Cup in January.

“We had so many chances but we were punished in the last minute and had no time to make amends.

“But I already told the players that our mission is not over. We still have the game with India for the third place game on Saturday.”

Thailand’s offensive game became less effective with the absence through injury of two key players, Chanathip Songkrasin and Theerasil Dangda.

Sirisak took the opportunity to test young players, including 16-year-old sensation Suphanat Muenta of Buriram United.

“Our team was affected without Chanathip and Teerasil,” Sirisak declared. “I didn’t pick Teerasil because he was not ready physically so I didn’t want to take a risk with him. However I did get the chance to test young players, who will become a force for Thailand in the future.”

Thailand will play earlier game on Saturday, the third-placed playoff against India, who lost 3-1 to Curacao. That game will kick off at 3.30pm and can be seen on Thai Rath TV 32. The final between Vietnam and Curacao will follow at 7.45pm.

“I have to check the injury updates to find the most appropriate line-up for the game with India but there will be some changes for sure,” Sirisak added.

Thailand were far from impressive in losing 4-1 to India in January’s Asian Cup group stage which prompted the sacking of Milovan Rajevac and the appointment of Sirisak as interim coach.

Sirisak’s playere will aim to restore national pride after that humiliating loss but Sirisak didn’t want to overstate the mission ahead.

“I don’t want to say that we’re looking for a revenge,” he said. “We just need a chance to play them again and see what why we lost on that day. We need to do our best this time.”

Cheers from fans could not distract the 2003 European Championship silver medalists who remained soli from start to finish as they won in straight sets 25-16 25-18 25-13, extending their impressive run to eight wins against one defeat (to Japan) after three weeks.

The Kingdom’s squad, meanwhile, have lost six matches with three wins. However, they already improved from last year where they managed only two wins out of 15 matches. They will next head for Pool 15 which consists of Brazil, Serbia and host Japan in Tokyo.

Nine defeats out of nine for debutants Bulgaria

Earlier, four-time Pan-American Cup champions Dominican Republic overcame a third-set lapse to beat Bulgaria 3-1 and hand the Europeans their ninth straight defeat.

The 2009 Grand Champion Cup bronze medallists prevailed 25-20 25-21 29-31 25-20 to collect their fifth win out of nine matches, while debutants Bulgaria were left searching for their first.

“Bulgaria played well. They made us sweat a lot out there but I’m still happy with how my players performed in this tournament,” said Dominican coach Marcos Kwiek, whose team  finished 14th in the 2018 League with just three wins out of 15 matches.

Bulgarian coach Ivan Petkov saw some light at the end of the tunnel after his team took the third set but then had to accept defeat again.

“We played well against good opponents, especially in the third set. Our young players have learned from this match. We hope to finally win next week,” Petkov said.

After losing the first set, Bulgaria put up a fight and stayed neck-and-neck with Dominican until 20-all, when the Caribbean nation’s experience suddenly proved crucial.

The Dominican players intensified their attacks and tore the Bulgarian defence apart, reeling off four points in a row to take the set in 31 minutes.

With their backs to the wall, Bulgaria came from 18-16 down in the third set to challenge the Dominicans again, on the back of a solid defence. After facing several match points, they finally took the 39-minute set.

Bulgaria tried to keep the momentum going into the fourth set but it was Dominicans who raised the level of their play at crucial moments and sealed victory.

The Dominican Republic will next enter Pool 14, which also includes Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands, the matches to be played in Stuttgart from June 11-13.

Bulgaria will play in Pool 18 in Ningbo against hosts China, Serbia and Germany.

Austria’s Dominic Thiem 

Top seed and world number one Djokovic won 7-5, 6-2, 6-2 and will face Austrian fourth seed Dominic Thiem on Friday in what will be his 35th Grand Slam semi-final.

Thiem reached the semi-finals for a fourth successive year with a 6-2, 6-4, 6-2 victory against Russian 10th seed Karen Khachanov.

“It was a big challenge for me today but I was hitting the ball more cleanly,” said 32-year-old Djokovic.

“It’s a great joy to be in the semi-finals again.”

The problem for Djokovic now in his pursuit of a second title in Paris and 16th major is the weather.

Heavy rain is forecast to hit Paris again on Friday after Wednesday’s washout.

“I just have to keep my concentration and stay in the moment. I hope to continue like this,” said the Serb.

Friday’s other semi-final will see Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer resume their great rivalry, meaning this is the first time the top four seeds have all reached the last four at a Grand Slam since the 2013 Australian Open.

The last time Djokovic made the semi-finals was 2016 when he went on to win the title.

He has a 6-2 career lead over Thiem and beat the Austrian in the Rome semi-finals in the run-up to Paris.

However, Thiem came out on top in the Roland Garros quarter-finals in straight sets in 2017.

Fifth seed Zverev, bidding to reach a maiden Slam semi-final and become the first German in the last-four in Paris since Michael Stich in 1996, made the stronger start.

The 22-year-old had break points in the third and fifth games of the opening set and finally broke through for a 5-4 lead.

But top seed Djokovic levelled immediately before claiming the set on a Zverev double fault.

Djokovic dominated the second set as breaks in the second and eighth games were enough to tighten his grip.

The world number one saved two more break points in the opening game of the third set and again made the German pay with a break for 4-2.

Zverev’s 40th and last unforced error proved to be the final point of the one-sided quarter-final.

“I had chances in the first set but he broke back and was in control,” said the German.

“When he’s in control, he’s tough to beat. He’s number one for a reason.

“I expected more from this tournament but once the first set slipped away, it was difficult.”

The world number five finished with eight double faults while converting just one of eight break points.

Thiem was utterly dominant on Court Suzanne Lenglen, hammering 29 winners, as his erratic opponent contrived to tally 37 unforced errors and only 17 winners.

“The key was to control the points. I’ll be ready to maybe come back here tomorrow. This is one of my favourite courts in the world,” said the 25-year-old, who is chasing a maiden Grand Slam title.

Khachanov had impressed in a fourth-round victory over Juan Martin del Potro, but was never in with a chance in the quarter-final, which was delayed from Wednesday due to rain, dropping serve twice in the opening set.

He managed to get to 4-4 in the second, only to see Thiem reel off eight of the next 10 games and seal a last-four spot without even facing a break point in the match.