Reuters sports schedule at 0001 GMT on Friday:OLYMPICSRussia's Mutko says ready to resign over Olympic banMOSCOW - Russian Deputy Prime Minister Vitaly Mutko, who was banned for life from the Olympics this week, said on Thursday he was ready to resign over the International Olympic Committee's (IOC) decision to exclude Russia from the 2018 Winter Olympics. (CRICKET-ASHES/LYON, expect by 0800 GMT/3 AM ET, by Ian Ransom, 400 words)NFLFalcons host Saints in NFC South battleQuarterback Marr Ryan and the Atlanta Falcons host Drew Breez and the New Orleans Saints in an NFC South matchup with playoff implications for both teams. (FOOTBALL-NFL-ATL-NO/, expect by 0515 GMT/12:15 AM ET, by The Sports Xchange, 400 words)NBARockets face Jazz in UtahThe high-scoring Houston Rockets look to break through the vaunted Utah Jazz defense, while two squads with young cores, the Los Angeles Lakers and the 76ers, face off in Philadelphia in two of the four games on the National Basketball Association's schedule. (ICEHOCKEY-NHL/HIGHLIGHTS, expect by 0430 GMT/11:30 PM ET, by The Sports Xchange, 400 words)NORTH AMERICAN SPORTSRoundups of off-field developments in the major North American professional sports leagues. (FIGURESKATING-ISU/FINAL (PIX), by Elaine Lies, 300 words) (Asia desk editor: Nick Mulvenney)

Source: Economic Times December 08, 2017 00:11 UTC