NorthEast United FC will look for  change in fortunes under former Chelsea manager Avram Grant  when they take on FC Goa in an Indian Super League match, here  tomorrow.
Having guided Chelsea to the UEFA Champions League final  in 2008, Grant has been roped in as technical adviser in place  of Joao de Deus Pires as NorthEast United FC hope to salvage  their chances despite a poor start to the fourth edition of  ISL.
The Gaurs come here after playing a valiant 1-1 draw  against ATK in a bizarre ISL clash that finished well past  midnight in Kolkata and will pose a strong challenge to the  home outfit.
NorthEast United are ninth on the table with four points  from seven matches just ahead of Delhi Dynamos.
"The mood has changed (in the dressing room) with arrival  of the new (technical) adviser. The boys are geared up and  ready for tomorrow's match," goalkeeping coach Joseph Siddy  said during pre-match media interaction.
With three home matches in a row against FC Goa, ATK  (January ..

NorthEast seek revival under new manager

PTI Automatic

Gilles Simon staged a dramatic comeback  to knock out top seed and tournament-favourite Marin Cilic,  making his first ATP World Tour final in more than two years  at the Tata Open Maharashtra, here today.
In a sensational turnaround, the unseeded Frenchman  toppled the world number six from Croatia 1-6 6-3 6-2 in a  gripping semifinal encounter.
The former world top-10 player, now placed a humble 89th,  shrugged off the opening set debacle to stun Cilic, the 2017  Wimbledon finalist, in one hour and 51 minutes.
He will now gun for his 13th ATP title, having played his  last final in September 2015 when he lost to compatriot Jo-  Wilfred Tsonga at home in Metz.
Cilic, with an intimidating 66 frame, was ruthless in  the beginning but Simon effortlessly changed the complexion of  the game. From nowhere, he seized the momentum to rattle  Cilic.
His consistent returns, even on the powerful serves of  Cilic, unsettled the Croat, who started to make unforced  errors and could never ...

Simon shocks Clic to storm into final of Tata Open Maharashtra

Pole vault legend Sergey Bubka was  today named as the International Event Ambassador for Tata  Mumbai Marathon, to be held on January 21 here.
The announcement was made by Procam International,  organisers of the marathon.
The 54-year-old Ukrainian Bubka is a six-time world  champion, an Olympic Gold medallist and a former world  record holder for men's pole vault.
"I have heard a lot about the energy and spirit of  this iconic race, and am looking forward to partaking in the  exhilarating experience in Mumbai," Bubka was quoted as saying  in the media release.

Sergey Bubka is Int Event Ambassador of Tata Mumbai Marathon

India bowlers led by Bhuvneshwar  Kumar continued to get breakthroughs despite attacking batting  from South Africa as the hosts were reduced to 230 for 7 at  tea on the opening day of the first cricket Test.
Debutant Jasprit Bumrah (1/60 in 13 overs) and young  Hardik Pandya (1/37 in 9 overs) removed the dangerous pair of  AB de Villiers (65) and skipper Faf du Plessis (62) in quick  succession after their whirlwind 114-run stand to give the  visitors an upperhand after the second session.
The dangerous Quinton de Kock (43) was removed by  Bhuvneshwar (4/68 in 14 overs) and the Proteas looked  uncomfortable despite maintaining a healthy run-rate of 4.33  across the 53 overs that has been bowled over two sessions.
Keshav Maharaj was unbeaten on 23 runs alongside Kagiso  Rabada (0 not out) at the break.
Post lunch, De Villiers and Du Plessis brought up their  100-partnership for the fourth wicket off 134 balls.
Bumrah got his maiden scalp in De Villiers as he angled  one in which ...

India bowlers put SA on mat, home team reach 230/7 at tea

A tough challenge awaits debutants  Gokulam Kerala FC as they take on red-hot Minerva Punjab FC in  an I-League match at the EMS Corporation Stadium, here  tomorrow.
Gokulam Kerala FC's home outing hasn't been good so far  and they were on the receiving end in their final match of  last year when reigning champions Aizawl FC overpowered them,  thanks to double strikes by Daniel Addo and Andrei Ionescu.
During the pre-match press conference today, coach Bino  George explained that the cold plunge in his foreign recruits'  form and injury was averting them from getting the desired  results.
"Ours is a new team. It will take time for us to settle  down as a unit. The same applies to players as well.  Foreigners are scoring goals for other teams. We are not  getting the same sort of services from ours. That is our  problem," he said.
He informed that the seasoned prolific striker Odafa  Okolie is likely to debut tomorrow for the yellow outfit  provided that the formalities are ...

Minerva challenge awaits Gokulam Kerala FC tomorrow

Scoreboard at tea on day one of  the first cricket Test between India and South Africa here  today:
South Africa first innings:
Dean Elgar
c Saha b Bhuvneshwar
0
Aiden Markram
lbw b Bhuvneshwar
5
Hashim Amla
c Saha b Bhuvneshwar
3
AB de Villiers
b Bumrah
65
Faf du Plessis
c Saha b Pandya
62
Quinton de Kock  c Saha b Bhuvneshwar  43
Vernon Philander b Shami
23
Keshav Maharaj
not out
23
Kagiso Rabada
not out
1
Extras: (B-2, LB-2, NB-1)
5
Total: (for 7 wkts in 53 overs)
230
Fall of wickets: 1-0, 2-7, 3-12, 4-126, 5-142, 6-202,  7-221.
Bowling: Bhuvneshwar Kumar 14-2-68-4, Mohammed Shami 12-4  43-1, Jasprit Bumrah 13-0-60-1, Hardik Pandya 9-1-37-1, R  Ashwin 5-1-18-0.

 Scoreboard at tea on day one of

South Africa were 230 for seven at  tea on the first day of the opening cricket Test against  India, here today.
AB de Villiers made 65, while captain Faf du Plessis  scored 62.
Bhuvneshwar Kumar (4/68) was the pick of the bowlers for  India.
Brief Scores:
South Africa 1st innings: 230 for seven in 53 overs (AB  de Villiers 65, Faf du Plessis 62, Bhuvneshwar Kumar 4/68).

South Africa 230/7 at tea on Day 1 of 1st Test

Pro Wrestling League debutants Veer  Marathas have vowed to pump in every penny they raise from the  championship, including all the sponsorship money, back into  the sport.
"Maharashtra is a natural home for wrestling. Our first  international champions have come from here. We want to take  the sport back to its former glory," franchise co-owner Ranjit  Saxena said.
India's first individual medal winner in the Olympics  Games, KD Jadhav, in fact was born in Goleshwar, Maharasthra.
Ravi Jain, another co-owner, underlining his vision for  the sport, said that the Veer Marathas would set up wrestling  academies in places like Sholapur and Aurangabad that have a  well-known affinity to wrestling.
"We are delighted to be part of the Marathas," the team's  champion player Praveen Rana said.
"We are also grateful to have such gracious owners, who  have come into the sport to promote it, rather than for any  commercial reasons," he added.

Veer Marathas vow to pump in PWL earnings back into the sport

M. Kazima and R. Rathika, both  from Tamil Nadu emerged champions, winning the Cadet girls  singles and Sub-Junior girls singles crowns respectively in  the LIC of India sponsored 44th Sub-Junior National and  Inter-State Carrom Championship here today.
In the cadet girls final, M. Kazima (12) brooked no  opposition from her statemate S. Abirami who was unable to get  going. Kazima quickly got into a rhythm and pocketed the coins  with consistent regularity to score a thumping 21-0, 21-0  victory.
Meanwhile, Rathika also came up with a steady  performance to dash the hopes of Maharashtra's Shruti Sonawane  without much difficulty. Playing confidently the  14-year-old Rathika cruised to a comfortable 15-2, 20-2  triumph.
There was more disappointment for Maharashtra as  Nilansh Chiplunkar and Om Taware went down fighting to Uttar  Pradeshs Krishnadayal Yadav and Mohammad Areeb of Delhi  in the cadet boys singles and sub-junior boys singles finals  respectively.
Results:  Cadet girls ...

TN girls Kazima, Rathika lift cadet, sub-junior carrom titles

Debutants Gokulam Kerala FC will  be aiming for an upset when they take on the in-form Minerva  Punjab FC at the EMS Corporation Stadium here tomorrow.
Gokulam Kerala FC's were beaten by reigning champions  Aizawl FC, thanks to double strikes by Daniel Addo and Andrei  Ionescu, in their last home outing.
Coach Bino George, during the pre-match press conference,  explained that the cold plunge in foreigners' form and injury  was to be blamed for the loss.
"Ours is a new team. It will take time for us to settle  down as a unit. The same applies to players as well.  Foreigners are scoring goals for the other teams. We are not  getting the same sort of services from ours. That is our  problem," he said.
Meanwhile, he informed that the seasoned prolific striker  Odafa Okolie is likely to debut tomorrow for the yellow outfit  provided that the formalities are completed before that.
"Odafa Okolie knows what the team seeks from him. He  scored nine goals in the second division last season and 

I-League: Kerala FC to take on Minerva Punjab FC

As many as four Indians have  reached the quarterfinals of the ongoing British Junior Open  Squash here, with at least one semi-final spot assured.
The Indian boys have made it to the last eight stage in  two age categories.
India is assured of a semi-final spot in the boys U-17  section where Tushar Shahani and Saksham Choudhary, both  seeded 9/16, will face each other later today.
But there are chances of a couple of more semi-final  spots. Neel Joshi, seeded 3/4, has also reached the quarters  as has Arnaav Sareen, seeded 17/32, both in the U-15 section.
Tushar, Saksham, Neel and Arnaav had impressive runs.
Both Tushar and Saksham beat higher seeded opponents on  their way to quarter-finals.
Tushar's victims were Harish Qasim of Pakistan (9-11 10-  12 11-9 11-8 11-8) in the second round after a bye in the  first. Then he got past Juan Carlos (Mexico) 11-9 12-10 11-5  before getting the better of 5/8 seed Lewis Anderson of  England 11-9 11-7 5-11 6-11 11-1 in the ...

4 Indians reach quarters of British Junior Open Squash

Grandmaster Deepan Chakkravarthy  kept up his winning ways as he beat defending champion  Adam Tukhaev in the sixth round of the IIFL Wealth 3rd Mumbai  Open International Chess Tournament here.
The game that lasted 79 moves saw many twists and  turns. But in the end, Deepan pulled off a crucial victory and  moved to a score of 6/6, which puts him in firm control with  only three more rounds to go, a media release issued here  said.
Iran's Parham Maghsoodloo is the only player close on  Deepan's heels with 5.5/6.
In the junior group, the field has opened up widely  following a draw between Aaryan Varshney and Nikhil Magizhnan  on the top-board in round six.
Gukesh D, Pranav V and Srihari LR notched up victories  in their respective games, thus joining Aaryan and Nikhil in  lead with 5.5/6.
A total of 600 players from 25 countries are  participating across the two sections of this tournament which  has a cumulative prize fund of Rs 20 lakh.

GM Chakkravarthy nudges ahead in Mumbai chess tournament

Singam Subash Singh scored a brace to  help NEROCA FC register a 2-1 win over Indian Arrows and move  up to the second position in the Hero I-League, here today.
A first-half brace by Subash Singh (39th, 45th minutes)  helped NEROCA outplay a young Indian Arrows side for the  majority of the game.
Birthday boy Abhijit Sarkar (89th) scored a late  consolation goal for the Arrows but it couldn't deter the Gift  Raikhan-coached team from bagging all three points at the  Khuman Lampak Main Stadium.
Young Prabshukhan Singh Gill continued to stand in  between the posts for the Arrows. Up front, Rahim Ali was  deployed centrally and had support from Nongdamba Naorem and  Rahul Kannoly Praveen on the flanks.
Nigerian striker Felix Chidi lead the line for the home  side, with Akhlidin Israilov in the attacking midfielder  position. Seasoned striker Subash Singh started the game on  the left wing.
Felix Chidi was at the forefront of most of NEROCA's  forays forward. The Nigerian striker, at the 

Subash Singh strikes twice to help NEROCA beat Arrows 2-1

Former world number one Maria  Sharapova was dumped out in the semi-finals of the Shenzhen  Open, losing in three sets to holder Katerina Siniakova of the  Czech Republic here today.
The Russian will return to the top 50 next week with the  Australian Open looming at the end of the month, but she  failed to reach her second final since returning last April  after a drugs ban.
Siniakova, the sixth seed, beat the 30-year-old 6-2, 3-6,  6-3 and will face world number one Simona Halep in the final.
Halep cruised into the decider in southern China with a  comfortable 6-1, 6-4 victory over fellow Romanian Irina-  Camelia Begu.
Sharapova was banned for 15 months for taking the  performance-enhancing substance meldonium, and has been  working her way up the rankings since returning to action,  winning the Tianjin Open in October.

Sharapova suffers Shenzhen semi-final defeat

Young English leg-spinner Mason Crane  was encouraged by his first bowling stint in Test cricket here  today and is hoping for a better return than legendary Shane  Warne's unflattering Test debut.
Crane, who at 20 is the youngest specialist spinner to  play for England in 90 years, made a creditable start to his  Test cricket career with figures of no wicket for 58 off 17  overs on the second day.
The Hampshire youngster had the daunting task of bowling  to Australia's prolific scorers Steve Smith and Usman Khawaja,  but he stuck to his guns and was unlucky not to snare a  wicket.
Crane, who took five wickets bowling for New South Wales  in a domestic Sheffield Shield match at the Sydney Cricket  Ground last year, takes encouragement from Warne's one for 150  on his Test debut against India at the SCG in 1992.
Warne went on to become the greatest Test leg-spinner  with 708 wickets, second only to Sri Lankan world record  holder Muttiah Muralitharan's 800.
"I'm hoping for slightly ...

Crane takes comfort in Warne's Test debut

Former captain AB de Villiers  negated Bhuvneshwar Kumar's terrific first spell with a  counter-attacking half-century as South Africa reached 107 for  3 at lunch on the opening day of the first cricket Test.
After Bhuvneshwar (3/39 in 9 overs) wreaked havoc  reducing South Africa to 12 for 3 inside the fifth over, De  Villiers (59 batting) and skipper Faf du Plessis (37 batting)  added 95 runs for the unbroken fourth wicket to steady the  ship.
De Villiers was in his element as he hit as many 11  boundaries in 65 balls while Du Plessis also showed positive  intent hitting seven fours in 67 balls after opting to make  first use of the wicket.
Bhuvneshwar got India off to a rollicking start as he  took three wickets in the first three overs.
He had Dean Elgar (0) caught behind off the third ball of  the match. An over later, he trapped Aiden Markram (5) lbw  with a sharp inswinger.
The ever-dependable Hashim Amla (3) too was caught behind  off the Meerut speedster as his first spell ...

Bhuvi rocks top-order but AB 59 takes SA to 107/3 at lunch

Scoreboard at lunch on day one in  the first Test match between India and South Africa here  today:
South Africa First Innings
Dean Elgar
c Saha b Bhuvneshwar
0
Aiden Markram
lbw b Bhuvneshwar
5
Hashim Amla
c Saha b Bhuvneshwar
3
AB de Villiers
not out
59
Faf du Plessis
not out
37
Extras
(b2, lb1)
3
Total
(3 wkts, 26 Ov)
107
Fall of wickets: 0-1, 7-2, 12-3.
Bowling: Bhuvneshwar Kumar 9-2-39-3, Mohammed Shami 9-3  33-0, Jasprit Bumrah 7-0-31-0, Hardik Pandya 1-0-1-0.

 Scoreboard at lunch on day one in

South Africa were 107 for three at  lunch on the first day of the opening cricket Test against  India, here today.
AB de Villiers was batting on 59 , while giving him  company was captain Faf du Plessis on 37.
South Africa's all three wickets were picked by India  pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar (3/39).
Brief Scores:
South Africa 1st innings: 107 for three in 26 overs (AB  de Villiers 59 batting, Faf du Plessis 37 batting; Bhuvneshwar  Kumar 3/39).

South Africa 107/3 at lunch on Day 1 of 1st Test

Former Pakistan captain Salman Butt  and discarded wicketkeeper-batsman Kamran Akmal have called on  Pakistan selectors to show the same consistency as their  Indian counterparts do while picking the national team.
Butt and Kamran feel that Indian selectors, compared to  their Pakistani counterparts, show more consistency in giving  chances to their players.
"India shows more consistency in allowing their players  to play top-level cricket," Butt noted.
"Rohit Sharmas batting average was around 25 and 30 at  one stage but the Indian selectors gave him consistent chances  and today he has become a world class performer, Butt said.
Butt and Kamran also felt that one reason for Pakistani  not producing the same quality batting as India was because of  the inconsistent nature of pitches used in the first class  matches.
"You need to have pitches in domestic cricket where  batsmen can build their innings and stay for long. This is  only way to give them confidence and prepare them for  ...

Be as consistent as Indian selectors: Butt, Akmal to Pak panel

Pakistan's former captain and coach  Javed Miandad has called on his country's Cricket Board to  forget about playing India in the near future and instead  focus on improving the game's structure here.
"They don't want to play with us so be it. Our cricket  will not die if we don't play with India. We should move on  and forget about them," Miandad told the media at a function  in Karachi.
The veteran of 124 Tests said there was no need for the  PCB to "beg" the BCCI for bilateral matches.
"They haven't played against us since the last 10 years,  so what? Has our cricket gone down? no we have done well. The  Champions Trophy win is an example. Cricket cannot die in  Pakistan. We have also survived without international cricket  at home since 2009," he pointed out.
India and Pakistan have not played bilateral cricket  since 2012 owing to political tensions between the two  countries after the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks.
The former captain urged the PCB to manage its finances  ...

Forget about playing India in near future: Miandad to PCB

Scoreboard at the close on day two in  the fifth Ashes Test between Australia and England here today:
England first innings (overnight 233-5)
A. Cook
lbw b Hazlewood
39
M. Stoneman
c Paine b Cummins
24
J. Vince
c Paine b Cummins
25
J. Root
c M. Marsh b Starc
83
D. Malan
c Smith b Starc
62
J. Bairstow
c Paine b Hazlewood
5
M. Ali
c Paine b Cummins
30
T. Curran
c Bancroft b Cummins
39
S. Broad
c Smith b Lyon
31
M. Crane
run out (M.Marsh/Bancroft) 4
J. Anderson
not out
0
Extras (lb2, w2)
4
Total (all out; 112.3 overs)
346
Fall of wickets: 1-28, 2-88, 3-95, 4-228, 5-233, 6-251,  7-294, 8-335, 9-346, 10-346.
Bowling: Starc 21-6-80-2, Hazlewood 23-4-65-2, Cummins  24.3-5-80-4 (2w), Lyon 37-5-86-1, M. Marsh 7-0-33-0.
Australia first innings
C. Bancroft
b Broad
0
D. Warner
c Bairstow b Anderson  56
U. Khawaja
not out
91
S. Smith
not out
44
Extras (b1, nb1)
2
Total (2 wickets; 67 overs)
193
Fall of wickets: 1-1 (Bancroft), 2-86 (Warner)
To bat: S. Marsh, M. Marsh, T. Paine, M. Starc, P.  ...

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