Page 1054 - Sports
Bangladesh's Shakib fears infected finger will never fully recover
Injured Bangladesh all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan fears his finger will never fully recover from an infection despite a planned second surgery in Australia this month. Shakib underwent an emergency operation on his finger on September 27 in Dhaka after it became affected by a bacterial infection while he was playing in the Asia Cup in the United Arab Emirates. Doctors cleared a large amount of pus from his infected finger and advised him to undergo a second surgery once the infection has cleared. "The main point is how I can cure the infection because my finger will never get back to 100 per cent normal," Shakib told reporters at Dhaka airport late on Friday as he left for Australia. "There is no chance of soft bone getting repaired again, it will not be completely okay, but with surgery they will put the hand into a shape from where I will be able hold bat and continue playing cricket," he said. Shakib said he was unsure when his second surgery would be conducted as he was yet to fully .
Pakistan's Yasir targets 20 Australian scalps, series win
Match-winning Pakistan spinner Yasir Shah has sent a warning to Australia's batsmen that he is targeting 20 wickets and a win in the two-match Test series starting in Dubai on Sunday. The 32-year-old has been Pakistan's main spin weapon since making his Test debut against Australia at the same venue four years ago. He and left-armer Zulfiqar Babar took 26 wickets between them to rout Australia 2-0. Yasir again holds the key for Pakistan in the two-match series, with the second in Abu Dhabi from October 16. "I have a target of 20 wickets," Yasir told AFP. "I know how important it will be to take wickets so that remains my target and for the team to win the series which is very important." Yasir has grown in stature and wickets with each series. He took 24 wickets in three Tests in a series win over Sri Lanka a year later. His 10 wickets at Lord's and five at The Oval formed the basis of Pakistan's 1-1 series draw in England two years ago before he took 25 in a 2-1 win in the West ...
What a practice series ahead of Australia tour! (Column: Just Sport)
Before going to South Africa, India played Afghanistan in Bengaluru and won the one-off Test by their biggest-ever margin till then, an innings and 262 runs in two days. After losing the five-Test series 1-4 in England, India returned to score a massive innings and 272 runs victory against West Indies inside three days at Rajkot!
Cahill to make ISL debut for Jamshedpur against Bengaluru (Preview)
Australian legend Tim Cahill is available for selection and could make his debut for Jamshedpur FC (JFC) when they take on the might of Bengaluru FC in the Hero Indian Super League clash at Sree Kanteerava Stadium, here on Sunday.
All eyes on Tim Cahill ahead of ISL debut
Australian legend Tim Cahill is available for selection and could make his debut for Jamshedpur FC when they take on the might of Bengaluru FC in the Hero Indian Super League clash here Sunday. Bengaluru go into this game after a hard-fought 1-0 win against defending champions Chennaiyin FC. After registering a clean sheet in the opener, coach Carles Cuadrat will once again want to keep things tight at the back and deny space to the likes of Sergio Cidoncha and Mario Arques who were outstanding against Mumbai City FC, besides Cahill, who featured for Australia at a record four World Cups. The Spaniard is also looking to utilise Bengaluru FC's set-piece capabilities against a side which likes to play with the ball on the ground. "We saw last week that they were very good against Mumbai when they have the ball. They can construct good offensive attacks. Our plan will be to be competitive and to keep the ball and utilise our strikers. You saw in the second half (against Chennaiyin FC) ...
United dismiss reports of sacking Mourinho
Manchester United board has dismissed reports of sacking manager Jose Mourinho by the weekend.Dubbing these speculations as "nonsense", a club spokesperson has trashed the possibility of parting ways with the former Chelsea manager, goal.com reported.Mourinho had come under fire after the Red Devils got off to a poor start to the Premier League season. There have been talks of disputes with players, primarily with French World Cup winner Paul Pogba amid a four-game winless streak.The Portuguese admitted that the recent results are unacceptable. Mourinho won the Community Shield, the EFL Cup and the Europa League in his first season at Old Trafford after taking over in 2016.Despite finishing second in the Premier League last season, United have failed to mount a series title tilt under the 55-year-old and was 10th after a 3-1 loss to West Ham last weekend.United suffered back-to-back defeats against Brighton and Tottenham in August but looked to have turned a corner by winning three ...
Tamil Thalaivas to take on Patna Pirates in Season VI opener
: The stage is set for Season VI of the Pro Kabaddi League with Tamil Thalaivas taking on defending champion Patna Pirates in the opener at the Nehru indooor stadium here Sunday. In the other match on the opening day, Puneri Paltan clashes with U Mumba. The popular 12-team league will move to Sonepat after the first leg here. At an event to unveil the trophy Friday, captains of all the teams sounded confident about doing well. Patna Pirates, winner of the last three editions starts as the favourites, while Gujarat Fortunegiants, Bengal Warriors and Jaipur Panthers will be among the sides aiming to dethrone the champion. Patna Pirates captain Pardeep Narwal said the team had prepared well for the new season and aimed to win the title again. "This season I have worked on multiple strategic moves to counter our opponents. For Patna Pirates, one of the most challenging teams we believe is Puneri Paltan because their defence is very strong. I look forward to the season and I .
How the new national champion Vishwakarma is whacking the ball so hard?
After practising against a beast which throws a tennis ball at a speed of 280kms per hour, it was not a surprise that Siddharth Vishwakarma was whacking the ball around, catching his opponents by surprise at the National championships. Not even Arjun Kadhe, the strongest of the players at the championship, could stop the unheralded Varanasi lad from stealing the thunder. He pounded winners from both flanks with his angled shots, leaving his rivals gasping. Vishwakarma whose world rank is a humble 1221, is not even inside top-10 in India. Not even top-20. He is a distant 30 while Kadhe is India number six and was recently part of Indian Davis Cup team as a reserve member. Someone for whom heavy spin was the biggest weapon, adding power to his ground strokes took one month, heading into the nationals. This transformation came about after his coach Kamlesh Shukla brought a customised bowling machine from the USA and recovery machines from Korea to give his ward the best possible options .
Athletes unveil winners jersey of 2018 Saksham Pedal Delhi
Indian athletes Manorama Devi, Deborah Herold, Sonali Chanu, C Rajesh, Mayur Pawar and Bilal Ahmed on Saturday unveiled the winners' jerseys at the launch of the second edition of Saksham Pedal Delhi, Indias Premier Cyclothon.
Indian teenager Rayhan moves into title contention at Asia-Pacific golf
Indias highly rated Rayhan Thomas, who joins the Oklahoma State University next year, put himself into contention with a flawless 5-under 65 in the third round of the Asia-Pacific Amateur Golf Championships on Saturday.
Our batsmen need to trust their defence and not just attack: Brathwaite
The West Indies batsmen were guilty of playing too much attacking shots in the first Test against India and going forward stand-in captain Kraigg Brathwaite said they would have to find the right balance between caution and aggression. "Going forward what we need to do is along with the attacking shots, trust in defence. I think that's the key," said Brathwaite after India beat West Indies by an innings and 272-run in the series opener. "Obviously when the field goes back, it's a matter of still staying positive in defence also and putting away the bad balls, stroking the ball along the ground for singles. I just don't think we didn't trust our defence as much as we should have," he said. It was an embarrassing loss for the West Indies who were bowled out twice on day three. Brathwaite said debutant Prithvi Shaw's knock was an example of how to build an innings. The West Indies batsmen had little clue while facing the Indian spinners. "I think what they can look at is how India ...
After Lord's, went back to drawing board to sort out technical issues: Kuldeep
Kuldeep Yadav says his maiden five-wicket haul in Test cricket was a result of going back to the drawing board in his bid to improve as a red-ball bowler after being dropped from the Indian team during the England series. Kuldeep bowled only once during the five Test series in England, going wicket-less at Lord's before being ignored for the final two Tests. Constantly switching between formats, Kuldeep came back home and bowled long red-ball spells under the watchful eyes of his personal coach before the two-match home A series against Australia. Next up was Asia Cup, a white-ball competition. "It is very difficult to switch to red ball from white ball and vice versa, especially for a wrist spinner. It is challenging because you take time to get used to it. White ball is on the harder side, grips better. Red ball wears down faster, gets soft," Kuldeep said after becoming the first Indian chinaman to pick five wickets. "After coming back from England, I went to my coach at home, ...
SAFF U-18 Women Championship: Nepal to face Bangladesh in final
Nepal beat India 3-1 in a penalty shootout to enter the final of the SAFF U-18 Women's Championship.In the second semi-final clash, Bangladesh defeated Bhutan 4-0 to set up summit showdown against Nepal.On Friday, Nepal thrashed India in the first last-four match that took place in the Chalnglimithang Stadium of Thimpu, Bhutan.Both the team had scored one goal each in the additional time, taking the match to the penalty shootout.Goalkeeper Anjana Rana Magar's excellent performance contributed to the Nepal's win. She blocked two penalty kicks from the Indian team and scored one while Nepali team's Rekha Poudel and Manisha Raut scored two goals in the penalty. Pooja Rana's penalty kick, however, did not yield in goal.India's Tudu Jabamani scored a goal in the penalty shootout.Nepal took the lead in the match with the maiden goal scored by Rashmi Kumari Ghising in the 16th minute of the game while India's Samikshya had scored its maiden goal in the 63rd minute.In the second semi-final ...
Rajkot Test: India crush Windies by innings and 272 runs
Indian bowlers produced an exceptional bowling display to defeat West Indies by an innings and 272 runs in the opening Test of the two-match series at the Saurashtra Cricket Stadium here on Saturday.Asked to follow-on by India after being bowled out for 181 in the first innings, the Caribbean side attempted to launch a counter-attack against the Indian bowlers. However, their attempts were thwarted by the spinners.Other than Kieran Powell, who made a fighting 83, none of the batsmen could spend their time in the crease as they looked lost and beguile on tackling the spin trio of Ravichandran Ashwin, Kuldeep Yadav and Ravindra Jadeja. It was merely a repeat of the first innings' show, as West Indies folded up for just 196.Kuldeep snared his maiden five-wicket haul in Tests, returning with figures of five for 57, followed by Jadeja's three for 35. It was a dominant show by the spinners as the Caribbean side were no match for them.Earlier on Saturday, the visitors resumed at the ...
Indian Sports Fan roped in as Global Fan Associate for Asian Para Games
The Paralympic Committee of India (PCI) has roped in sports fan group Indian Sports Fan (ISF) as its Global Fan Associate for the Para Asian Games 2018.
Hamilton continues to set pace in 3rd practice at Japanese GP
Britain's Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes), clocked the fastest time in the third free practice session at the Formula 1 Japanese Grand Prix (GP) at Suzuka, while Germany's Sebastian Vettel (Ferrari) was second on Saturday.
'Never in a million years' - Hamilton grabs 80th pole as Vettel flounders
World champion Lewis Hamilton roared to pole position for the Japanese Grand Prix as Ferrari rival Sebastian Vettel slumped to eighth after a horror showing in Saturday's qualifying. Lewis, who leads Vettel by 50 points with five races left this season, led a Mercedes front-row lockout and will start as the hot favourite to tighten his stranglehold on the Formula One championship in Sunday's race at Suzuka. The Briton's record-extending 80th career pole never looked in doubt after his rampant form in completing a clean sweep of free practice earlier in the day. "I can't believe I have 80 poles," said Hamilton, who has won five of the last six races. "Never in a million years did I think I'd get 80. When it comes to being under pressure and making the right decisions, that's why we are the best team in the world." Ferrari's decision to begin the top-10 shootout on intermediate tyres instead of super-softs backfired spectacularly as the rain they expected held off just long enough for ..
Nishikori crushes French resistance to reach Tokyo final
Two-time champion Kei Nishikori swatted aside eighth seed Richard Gasquet with very little fuss on Saturday, beating the Frenchman in straight sets to reach the Japan Open final. Third seed Nishikori, who won the last of his 11 career titles in Memphis two years ago, completed a clinical 7-6 (7/2), 6-1 victory in 89 minutes and will be hot favourite to win the title for a third time. He faces qualifier Daniil Medvedev in Sunday's Tokyo final after the beanpole Russian overpowered Canada's Denis Shapovalov 6-3, 6-3. Nishikori, who won the Japan Open in 2012 and 2014, drew first blood against Gasquet as he tore through the first-set tiebreak, unleashing a whipped forehand into the corner to snaffle it 7-2. The world number 12 moved through the gears in the second set and Gasquet -- the beaten Tokyo finalist in 2007 -- had no answer as Nishikori battered shots past him at a dizzying pace. Once Nishikori, a former US Open runner-up who reached the New York semi-finals last month, bagged ..
Constantine calls thirteen U-23 players to join camp ahead of China friendly
Thirteen Under-23 players, who were part of the Indian squad in the SAFF Cup last month, were on Saturday summoned by Indian football team coach Stephen Constantine for the camp here as part of the preparation for the friendly against China.
Home Comforts: India crush West Indies inside three days for biggest win
India recorded their biggest Test win as they humiliated West Indies by an innings and 272 runs in the first match here Saturday, wrapping up one of the most ludicrous mismatches of recent times without breaking a sweat. India dominated the game, amassing 649 for nine in their first innings before bowling out the West Indies twice on day three, to take a 1-0 lead in the two-match series. They were bundled out for 181 in 48 overs before lunch and were expectedly forced to follow-on. They did not fare any better in the second innings, crumbling to 196 all out in 50.5 overs in the final session. Previously, the innings and 262-run win over Afghanistan in June this year was India's best in terms of innings victory. While Ravichandran Ashwin (4/37) was the pick of the bowlers in the morning, Kuldeep Yadav (5/57) was all over the opposition batsmen in the second innings on way to a maiden five-wicket haul in Tests. The feat makes Yadav the first player to have a five-wicket haul in all ...