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Soccer-Typhoon In-Fa forces CSL postponement after Shandong extend lead

By Michael Church

HONG KONG (Reuters) - The arrival of Typhoon In-Fa in eastern China on Sunday saw matches in Group B of the Chinese Super League postponed as the region experiences high speed winds and heavy rain.

Games in the Suzhou-based hub have been pushed back to an unspecified date, further compounding scheduling issues that have affected the Chinese Super League this year.

Group leaders Shanghai Port had been due to face Tianjin Tigers, while bitter rivals Shanghai Shenhua and Beijing Guoan were also set to meet.

Wuhan FC's game against Hebei FC and Changchun Yatai's match with Dalian Pro were the other fixtures to be affected.

The postponements come after Shandong Taishan opened up a three-point gap at the top of Group A in Guangzhou on Saturday with a 3-1 win over Chongqing Athletic.

Pedro Delgado, Guo Tianyu and Xu Xin were all on target for the Chinese FA Cup holders as they moved further ahead of second-placed Guangzhou FC.

Eight-time champions Guangzhou FC were held to a 3-3 draw by cross-city rivals Guangzhou City.

Brazil-born China international Elkeson was on the scoresheet for both teams, opening his account for Fabio Cannavaro's side after 18 minutes and then scoring an own goal four minutes later.

Jown Cardona put City in front from the penalty spot in the 34th minute, only for Elkeson to score again at the correct end a minute later as the teams went in level at the break.

Luo Guofu netted from the penalty spot for Guangzhou FC four minutes into the second half, but Guilherme equalised with a quarter of the game to go.

Shenzhen FC, like Guangzhou FC, have 15 points after they were held to a 0-0 draw by Henan Longmen, while Cangzhou Mighty Lions claimed their first win of the season with a 2-0 victory over Qingdao FC.

Games in this season's Chinese Super League are being played in biosecure centralised hubs in Guangzhou and Suzhou to limit cross-country travel due to the pandemic.

The current round of matches are scheduled to be played until Aug. 12, with the top four teams in each of the two groups advancing to the championship playoffs while the bottom four will feature in the relegation rounds.

Those games are slated to begin on Dec. 1 with the season set to finish in early January.

(Reporting by Michael Church, Editing by Alex Richardson)