South African pace great Dale Steyn has described Hardik Pandya as a superhero who "operates at another level mentally" with an unmatched aura, after the flamboyant India all-rounder's scintillating knock in the fifth T20I.
Pandya (63) hit the second fastest T20I fifty for India, while Tilak Varma produced a fluent 73 to set up the hosts' 30-run victory after they posted an imposing 232-run target for the Proteas here on Friday.
"Hardik was fantastic  he's transcended sportsman into celebrity territory, walking out like a superhero in a scripted movie plot where nobody alters his plan," said Steyn on JioStar.
He added, "It's not a bad attitude; it's pure dominance, an aura where nobody else can match what he does. You see it in his stance and presence  he's operating at another level mentally, unbreakable in a game that's all about mental battles. All these players are skilled, but he's elevated beyond."
Steyn did not support the South African batters' cautious approach against ...

Hardik Pandya, Hardik, Pandya

"Hardik was fantastic he's transcended sportsman into celebrity territory, walking out like a superhero in a scripted movie plot where nobody alters his plan," said Steyn

Press Trust of India

India's quest to find stable support acts who will serve them at least until next year's World Cup will begin with the first Women's T20I of the five-match series against Sri Lanka here on Sunday.
The familiar faces
skipper Harmanpreet Kaur, her deputy Smriti Mandhana, Jemimah Rodrigues, Deepti Sharma and Renuka Singh  are there, but it cannot be forgotten that they are either in their 30s or moving fast to that mark.
In that context, Indian think tank will watch the evolution of young batter G Kamalini and promising left-arm spinner Vaishanavi Sharma closely.
The 17-year-old Kamalini has shown her maturity across various stages for Tamil Nadu in the BCCI U23 T20 Trophy, then in the U19 World Cup earlier this year, and later in the Women's Premier League for Mumbai Indians.
On the other hand, Vaishanavi has been in the selectors' radar once she emerged the top wicket-taker in the U19 World Cup with 17 wickets.
In Radha Yadav's absence, the 19-year-old Vaishanavi may get a chance 

In that context, the Indian think tank will watch the evolution of young batter G Kamalini and promising left-arm spinner Vaishanavi Sharma closely

Kavem Hodge scored his second Test century and played an anchor role for the West Indies who showed resilience with the bat again on the third day of the third test against New Zealand.
Hodge was 109 not out at stumps, Anderson Phillip was 12 and the West Indies were 381-6 Saturday, having avoid the follow on as they replied to New Zealand's 575-8.
They achieved that goal, though they were without first test century-maker Shai Hope who has been out of action for the past two days with an unspecified illness.
New Zealand leads the three-match series 1-0 after the first test was drawn and the Black Caps won the second by nine wickets.
Hodge made 120 against England at Trent Bridge in July 2024 but had been past 50 only once in the 16 innings between that day and his redemptive innings at Bay Oval on Saturday.
He batted 3 1-2 hours and stalled a little in the 90s before pulling a ball from Michael Rae to reach a century from 224 balls.
I'm grateful to be honest, Hodge said. "We alwa

Hodge was 109 not out at stumps, Anderson Phillip was 12, and the West Indies were 381-6 Saturday, having avoided the follow-on as they replied to New Zealand's 575-8

Nathan Lyon severely dented England's desperate Ashes survival bid with three quick blows: vice-captain Harry Brook, bowled; captain Ben Stokes, bowled; leading scorer Zak Crawley, stumped.
Just as England was starting to gain confidence Saturday chasing what needed to be a world-record 435 to keep the Ashes series alive, Lyon returned to the Australian attack.
Crawley (85) and Brook (30) had combined in a 68-run stand to revive England's innings from 109-3 to 177-3 after Australia skipper Pat Cummins took out the top order.
Then Lyon, who moved to No. 2 on Australia's all-time list of wicket-takers in the first innings, started a new spell in the evening session.
On his second ball Lyon dismissed a cavalier Brook, who reached too far and completely missed an extravagant reverse sweep. The 38-year-old spinner quickly took three wickets for eight runs in a sequence that ripped through the middle order and suddenly England was 194-6.
Stokes, England's totemic leader, was out trying 

Just as England was starting to gain confidence Saturday, chasing what needed to be a world-record 435 to keep the Ashes series alive, Lyon returned to the Australian attack

Kishan's return has been powered by an exceptional Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy season, where he led from the front with the bat

Business Standard

How McLaren took control, Red Bull lost certainty, and Hamilton's Ferrari debut played out in a season without early answers

Formula 1

The proposal was submitted to AIFF and the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports on the final day of the deadline given to clubs to outline a consortium-led framework

Indian Super League

Top-ranked Carlos Alcaraz is parting ways with his longtime coach, Juan Carlos Ferrero, the man who guided him to the pinnacle of men's tennis during a remarkably successful seven-year partnership.
Alcaraz announced the decision to end their collaboration on Wednesday in a message on his social networks. Ferrero, in a separate statement, thanked his protege and said he wished he could have continued.
With Ferrero, who coached the Spaniard since he was 15 years old, Alcaraz claimed six Grand Slams: two French Open titles, two Wimbledon crowns and two US Opens. He amassed 24 tour-level titles, including eight Masters 1000 trophies.
After more than seven years together, Juanki and I have decided to bring our chapter together as coach and player to an end, the 22-year-old Alcaraz wrote. Thank you for turning childhood dreams into reality. We started this journey when I was barely a kid, and throughout all this time you've accompanied me on an incredible journey, on and off the court. I'

Carlos Alcaraz, Carlos, Alcaraz

Top-ranked Carlos Alcaraz is parting ways with his longtime coach, Juan Carlos Ferrero, the man who guided him to the pinnacle of men's tennis during a remarkably successful seven-year partnership.

The day began with uncertainty as Messi's charter flight from Mumbai was delayed due to adverse weather conditions

Lionel Messi, right, with his Inter Miami teammates Rodrigo De Paul, left, and Luis Suarez during an event as part of the 'GOAT India Tour 2025', at Arun Jaitley Stadium, in New Delhi

Lionel Messi's Delhi leg of his GOAT Tour in India was delayed after his charter flight was held up by fog. He is expected to fly out from Mumbai for final events.

Messi India tour

Harry Kane has rescued Bayern Munich from an embarrassing home defeat to the last-placed team in the Bundesliga.
The England forward scored a penalty in the 87th minute for Bayern to draw 2-2 with Mainz on Sunday. Bayern is the runaway league leader and yet to lose a game.
The visitors were playing their first league game under new coach Urs Fischer, back in the Bundesliga after enjoying great success with Union Berlin. Fischer was appointed last week to replace Bo Henriksen after Mainz's dismal start.
Bayern dominated from the start and Lennart Karl  the team's newest star  opened the scoring in the 29th when he was well placed for a tap-in to Serge Gnabry's cross.
It was Bayern's 50th Bundesliga goal of the season, a record after just 14 rounds of the league.
But the home team failed to make more of its superiority and was shocked before the break when defender Kacper Potulski equalized. It was the 18-year-old Polish youth international's first Bundesliga goal in just his second

Harry Kane

Harry Kane has rescued Bayern Munich from an embarrassing home defeat to the last-placed team in the Bundesliga.

Teenage defender Davide Bartesaghi scored his first senior goals but couldn't prevent AC Milan from being held to a 2-2 draw at home to Sassuolo and being overtaken at the top of Serie A by city rival Inter Milan on Sunday.
Inter won 2-1 at relegation-threatened Genoa to move a point ahead of Milan and two points above Napoli, which lost 1-0 at Udinese.
At San Siro, Ismal Kon gave Sassuolo a surprise lead in the 13th minute but Milan leveled in the 34th as Ruben Loftus-Cheek rolled the ball across the area for Bartesaghi to power in from close range.
The 19-year-old Bartesaghi doubled his tally immediately after halftime when he ran onto Christopher Nkunku's smart pass and fired inside the near post.
Christian Pulisic and Loftus-Cheek both had goals disallowed for Milan before Sassuolo equalized in the 77th minute through substitute Armand Laurient.
Laurient, who had changed the match when he came on, almost scored a stunning winner in the 88th minute following a solo run from his

Inter Milan

Christian Pulisic and Loftus-Cheek both had goals disallowed for Milan before Sassuolo equalised in the 77th minute through substitute Armand Laurient

Kylian Mbapp scored in his return from injury on Sunday, leading Real Madrid to a 2-1 win at Alaves in the Spanish league to relieve some of the pressure on coach Xabi Alonso.
Rodrygo also scored as Madrid moved back within four points of leader Barcelona, which beat Osasuna 2-0 on Saturday.
Madrid had won only two of its last eight games in all competitions and was coming off a 2-1 home loss to Manchester City in the Champions League, prompting jeers from fans at the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium.
"We are together in this, we keep fighting in the good and the bad moments," Alonso said.
"The team competed well today. We started well and came away with the three points. It's fundamental to be united, it's the only way to remain solid and improve day-to-day."
Mbapp, who missed Madrid's match against City on Wednesday because of a minor injury, scored his 26th goal of the season for Madrid in all competitions after a good run on the left, passing a defender before firing into the top cor

Kylian Mbappe, Kylian, Mbappe

Rodrygo also scored as Madrid moved back within four points of leader Barcelona

The Delhi police have issued a traffic advisory due to Lionel Messi's visit to Arun Jaitley Stadium today; several roads will face diversions and parking restrictions from noon to evening

Lionel Messi, Messi

The centrepiece of the Delhi leg will be the GOAT Cup exhibition match at the Arun Jaitley Stadium. The exhibition will feature a 9v9 game involving Minerva Academy's U14 and U15 teams

Lionel Messi's India Tour

In view of chaos during an event featuring Lionel Messi in Kolkata, the Delhi Police has made multi-layered security arrangements at and around the Arun Jaitley Stadium where the Argentine football icon will attend another event on Monday.
The event will be held at the stadium here between 1 pm and 4 pm, officials said on Sunday.
On Saturday, chaos erupted at the Salt Lake stadium in Kolkata as thousands of fans protested after failing to catch a clear glimpse of Messi during a much-hyped event, prompting police to resort to lathi charge. West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has ordered a high-level inquiry into the incident.
The Delhi Police said an elaborate and multi-layered security bandobast is being put in place for Messi's visit.
A senior police officer said comprehensive arrangements are being made to ensure the smooth conduct of the event, with a strong focus on crowd management, access control and traffic regulation.
According to the police, multiple security rings

The Delhi Police said an elaborate and multi-layered security bandobast is being put in place for Messi's visit

Salah, who had been at the center of recent tensions, was met with an enthusiastic reception by the Anfield crowd when he came on as a substitute in the first half.

Mohd Salah

Ishan's incredible 517-run outing in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2025, which helped his team Jharkhand win the title for the first time, has once again put him right back in the Indian squad

Ishan Kishan

Gill, in his last 18 T20I innings, was only able to amass 377 runs at an average of 20.94, with his best score being 47 vs Pakistan during the Asia Cup 2025

Shubman Gill injury update

India will start their campaign in the ICC T20 World Cup 2026 against the USA on February 7, 2026

India’s squad for ICC T20 World Cup 2026

India's squad for ICC T20 World Cup 2026

Shubman Gill, who was India's vice captain in the Asia Cup and the South Africa series, dropped due to poor run with the bat

India T20 World Cup squad announcement HIGHLIGHTS

The deal covers all major men's and women's ICC tournaments from 2026 to 2027, kicking off with the ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2026 in India and Sri Lanka.

ICC and AB InBev brand collaboration

Birla Estates' partnership with the Gujarat Titans reflects the company's focus on connecting with India's youth and fostering shared experiences beyond real estate.

Gujarat Titans

Months after RCB's first IPL crown, Diageo plans to sell both the men's and women's teams. Strategic reasons, valuation, and timeline explained.

Virat Kohli, RCB

The Bengaluru-based brand offers cricket-specific footwear and lifestyle apparel, marking the cricket legend's foray into India's booming athleisure market

Sachin Tendulkar

BS provides the latest news and updates on sports events like football, cricket, FIFA 2019, hockey, badminton, lawn tennis, IPL and more related sports news. Catch sports breaking news at Business Standard.

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