Reuters Sports Schedule at 1400 GMT on Thursday, Oct 31

Reuters

Reuters sports schedule at 1400 GMT on Thursday: - - - - SOCCER PARIS - Although January signing Lucas has yet to clinch a regular starting place for Paris St Germain, the forward is confident he will get in the Brazil squad for next year's World Cup on home soil. (SOCCER-WORLD/LUCAS, (INTERVIEW, PIX), expect by 1500 GMT/11 AM ET, by Olivier Guillemain, 500 words) - - La Liga Granada v Atletico Madrid (1900) Villarreal v Getafe (1900) Athletic Bilbao v Elche (2100) Real Betis v Levante (2100) Atletico look to keep pace with Barca MADRID - Second-placed Atletico Madrid can trim the deficit to unbeaten leaders Barcelona back to one point with victory at Granada. (SOCCER-SPAIN/ (PIX), expect by 2100 GMT/5 PM ET, by Iain Rogers, 400 words) - - Serie A AS Roma v Chievo Verona (1945) Ten wins in a row is Roma aim ROME - Roma aim for a 10th straight league victory of an astonishing start to the season when they host Chievo. (SOCCER-ITALY/, expect by 2200 GMT/6 PM ET, 300 words) - - - - TENNIS ATP: Paris Masters (to Nov 3) World Tour Finals scramble is hotting up PARIS - Stanislas Wawrinka, Richard Gasquet and Milos Raonic continue their fight to clinch the two remaining spots in next week's season-ending World Tour Finals. (TENNIS-MEN/MASTERS, (PIX), expect by 1300 GMT/9 AM ET, by Julien Pretot, 600 words) - - WTA: Tournament of Champions, Sofia (to Nov. 3) Copy on merit - - - - MOTOR RACING Maldonado says he will decide who he drives for ABU DHABI - Venezuelan Formula One driver Pastor Maldonado said he had several offers on the table for next season and the decision to leave or stay at Williams would be up to him. (MOTOR RACING-PRIX/MALDONADO, moved, by Alan Baldwin, 400 words) We will have other news from the paddock ahead of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix on Sunday. - - - - BASEBALL Strange yet stirring World Series serves up big finish NEW YORK - The Major League Baseball season ended on Wednesday with a strange yet stirring World Series won by the Boston Red Sox against a St Louis Cardinals team that will still have cause for optimism moving forward. (BASEBALL-WORLDSERIES/, expect by 2300 GMT/7 PM ET, by Larry Fine, 600 words) - - - - GOLF WGC-HSBC Champions Tournament, Shanghai (to Nov. 3) McIlroy back on top in China SHANGHAI - Former world number one Rory McIlroy produced one of his best rounds of a mediocre season to storm into a two-shot lead at the $8.5 million event. (GOLF-PGA/, moved, by Andrew Both, 600 words) - - - - NFL Streaking Bengals visit struggling Dolphins The AFC North division-leading Cincinnati Bengals look for a fifth consecutive victory when they visit a Miami Dolphins team that has lost four straight games after a hot start to the season. (NFL-DOLPHINS/ (PIX), expect by 0345 GMT/11:45 PM ET, 300 words) - - - - NBA Bulls, Clippers look to avenge season-opening losses The Chicago Bulls and Los Angeles Clippers look to recover from season-opening losses when they host the New York Knicks and Golden State Warriors respectively in the two regular season games on the schedule. (NBA-HIGHLIGHTS/ (PIX), expect by 0330 GMT/11:30 PM ET, by The Sports Xchange, 300 words) - - - - NHL Rangers eyeing first home win of season The New York Rangers look for their first home win of the season when they host the last-place Buffalo Sabres while the Anaheim Ducks seek their fourth consecutive victory when they visit the Boston Bruins in two of the three games on the schedule. (NHL-HIGHLIGHTS/ (PIX), expect by 0330 GMT/11:30 PM ET, by The Sports Xchange, 300 words) - - - - HORSE RACING Game On Dude set for Classic atonement LOS ANGELES - Game On Dude has a chance to atone for last year's disappointment after being installed as favourite to win Saturday's Breeders' Cup Classic, the feature event in the two-day racing carnival at iconic Santa Anita Park. (HORSERACING/BREEDERS, (PREVIEW), moved, by Mark Lamport-Stokes, 600 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) - - - - (Duty editor: Tony Jimenez)