Page 1125 - Sports

Lacklustre India suffer 1-2 defeat against Maldives in SAFF Cup final

Poor finishing and scrappy defending put paid to India's quest for an eighth South Asian Football Federation Cup title as it suffered a 1-2 defeat against Maldives in the summit clash here on Saturday. India, the defending champions, largely dominated the match with better ball possession and more shots at the opposition goal but the Maldives team scored from the few chances it got to lift the winners' trophy for the second time. Maldives had also won the title in 2008 edition which it co-hosted. Ibrahim Mahudhee Hussain and Ali Fasir scored in the 19th and 66th minutes respectively for Maldives against the run of play. Sumeet Passi (90+2 minute) pulled one back for India in the second minute of the injury time at the Bangabandhu Stadium. India, fielding an Under-23 side except for one player, was chasing its eight triumph in 12 editions and its third back-to-back title. But its forwards failed to put the ball on target on several occasions while the defenders lacked coordination. ...

Asian Games bridge gold medallists Pranab, Shibnath felicitated

Pranab Bardhan and Shibnath De Sarkar, who won the gold in bridge at the recently-concluded Asian Games, were felicitated by the Tollygunge club on the sidelines of an invitational bridge tournament here on Saturday.

ICC conducts annual elite panel conference in Dubai

The best match officials of the world converged here for four days and shared their expertise on the conduct of the game and application of the rules among others things during the annual Elite Panel Conference that culminated on Saturday. The conference, attended by the Elite Panel of Match Referees, Elite Panel of ICC Umpires, members of the emerging group of umpires and the umpire coaches, focused on implementation of the amendments to the Code of Conduct and Playing Conditions, low catches and use of technology. ICC Chief Executive David Richardson and ICC General Manager - Cricket, Geoff Allardice, were among those to address the gathering during different sessions. ICC Senior Manager, Umpires and Referees, Adrian Griffith said: "We don't get together very frequently during the course of the year even though we communicate regularly. When we are together, we use our experiences of dealing with situations and go over the playing conditions. "We had some very interactive sessions ..

Sakshi Malik sails into final in Belarus, Pooja to fight for bronze

Olympic medallist Sakshi Malik sailed into the final of the 62kg category of the Medved International wrestling tournament in Minsk, Belarus Saturday. Rio Olympics bronze medallist Sakshi, who returned empty-handed from the Jakarta Asian Games, defeated Elmira Gambarova of Azerbaijan 6-2 in the semi-final to set up a title clash against Marianna Sastin of Hungary on Sunday. Sakshi had earlier defeated Lais Nunes de Oliveira of Brazil 7 - 2 in the quarterfinals. The other Indian in fray, Pooja Dhanda, however was ousted in the quarterfinals after losing 0-10 against Battsetseg Altantsetseg of Mongolia in the 57kg category. She had earlier defeated Giullia Oliveira of Brazil 11-4 in the qualification round. Pooja, however, will have a chance to at least claim a bronze as she takes on Becka Leathers of USA in the repechage round Sunday.

Hamilton creates 'magic' to take pole position in Singapore

Lewis Hamilton produced a 'magic lap' to beat championship rival Sebastian Vettel for pole position in the Singapore Grand Prix here on Saturday. Ferrari seemed the faster car all weekend until Hamilton came up with a 1:36.105 in his first run in Q3. Vettlel was not able to respond to that and ended third fastest with a 1:36.628. Max Verstappen, in the Red Bull, was three-tenths faster than the German and will start on the front row with Hamilton. Hamilton was not able to improve on his remarkable first run but it was enough to provide him with the ideal launchpad for the race on Sunday as he looks to increase the 30-point championship lead over Vettel. "That lap felt like magic. Don't know where it came from. I am super overwhelmed," said Hamilton. Valtteri Bottas was fourth in the other Mercedes, followed by Kimi Raikkonen and Daniel Ricciardo. Sergio Perez was seventh fastest for Force India while his teammate Esteban Ocon was ninth with Romain Grosjean of Haas sandwiched between ..

Former England keeper Foster retires from all forms of cricket

Former England wicket-keeper James Foster has announced his decision to retire from all forms of cricket at the end of the ongoing season, after Essex decided not to renew his contract.

Kohli's captaincy not thoughtful, if not mindless (Column: Just Sport)

These days there is little time to celebrate or brood after a cricket series. After a long tour of England, some key India players, who play in all three formats of the game, are in the Gulf to play the Asia Cup.

Rishabh Pant in Delhi One Day squad, Gambhir to lead

Rising sensation Rishabh Pant, who scored his maiden Test hundred in England, will play the first three matches for Delhi in the upcoming Vijay Hazare Trophy, starting September 19. However, veteran Ishant Sharma has been rested after a gruelling England series where he sustained an ankle injury on the fourth day of the fifth Test. The 15-member team will be led by Gautam Gambhir and Dhruv Shorey will be his deputy. Gambhir has been handed back the captaincy after a gap of one year. Pant, who captained Delhi to Ranji Trophy final last year, didn't take up the leadership role as he is a certainty in the Indian Test squad for the West Indies series, starting October 4. With the consistent Shorey also expected to travel to New Zealand with the India A team, the selection committee chaired by Amit Bhandari decided to fall back on the experience of Gambhir, who is no longer in national reckoning. The only new face in the squad is rookie all-rounder Pranshu Vajayran, who bats left handed ...

Bhullar lies tied 8th after three rounds in Korea

India's Gaganjeet Bhullar failed to build on a brilliant start as he finished the day at three-under 68 but still improved his position from overnight tied 15th to tied eighth at the end of the third round of the 34th Shinhan Donghae Open golf tournament here Saturday. Bhullar is now eight-under for 54 holes but six shots behind the leader, Korea's Sanghyun Park (66). Park put together a bogey-free display on moving day, marking his card with five birdies before signing for a 14-under-par 199 total at the Bear's Best Cheongna Golf Club. Other Indians who made the cut Rashid Khan (72) slipped to tied 33rd, while Shiv Kapur (68) is tied 36th and Khalin Joshi (70) is tied 54th. Park has won seven titles on the KPGA (Korean PGA), including this year's GS Caltex Maekyung Open. Park's Korean compatriot Byeunghun An, the 2015 Shinhan Donghae Open champion, carded a 65 and will go into the final round just one shot behind the Korean. The 26-year-old An recorded a flawless scorecard with six ..

Anand hopeful of a good show in Chess Olympiad

Back in a mix after a gap of 12 years, five-time former world champion Viswanathan Anand on Saturday said he is confident of a good show at the 43rd Chess Olympiad in a week's time, adding that he feels his own form remains a bit wobbly these days.

Atletico Madrid to mark 1 year at Wanda Metropolitano stadium

Spanish football giants Atletico Madrid on Saturday was gearing up for this week's one-year anniversary of their first match at the Wanda Metropolitano stadium in a hard-fought La Liga victory over Malaga 1-0.

Ferrari F1 drivers dominate Singapore GP's last free practice, Vettel fastest

Ferrari drivers Sebastian Vettel of Germany and Kimi Raikkonen of Finland dominated the third and final free practice for the Formula One Singapore Grand Prix on Saturday, respectively setting the two fastest laps here at the Marina Bay Street Circuit.

Gayle, McCullum to feature in Afghanistan Premier League

Cricket fans in India will be treated with yet another overseas competitive cricket league from October 5 to 21.DSPORT, a premier sports channel of discovery communications India, will bring nonstop live cricketing action from the inaugural edition of the 'Afghanistan Premier League' for cricket enthusiasts.Afghanistan was given the rights to play Test after playing top class international cricket last year, where they debuted against India. Afghanistan are currently standing at the eighth spot in the T20 rankings and have also qualified for the 2019 World Cup which bears testimony to the massive growth of cricket in this country.With the presence of some highly-talented players in Afghanistan like Rashid Khan who tops the table in the best bowlers category and Mohammad Nabi who is world number two in the all-rounder category in the T20 format, Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) is all set with this one-of-its-kind league in order to provide a major platform for emerging players to ...

Metge wins Pan Africa Rally

Sherco TVS Factory Rally Teams Michael Metge has won the 15th edition of the Pan Africa Rally with a strong performance in the final stage on Saturday.

Badminton world champion Momota in Japan Open final

Japanese shuttler Kento Momota on Saturday defeated top seed Viktor Axelsen in straight games to reach the final of the Japan Open, where he faces Thailand's Khosit Phetpradab.

Sachin Tendulkar inspired me to make comeback after CWG snub: Sardar

He was low on confidence after the Commonwealth Games snub earlier this year but a telephonic chat with the iconic Sachin Tendulkar motivated Sardar Singh to work hard towards regaining his place in the national team. Sardar, 32, walked into the sunset on Wednesday after a glorious 12-year career following a disastrous Asian Games campaign, where India failed to defend its title and returned home with a consolation bonze. Left out of India's squad for this year's Gold Coast Commonwealth Games, Sardar sought advise from Tendulkar and the legend's tips worked wonders for the former hockey captain as he made a successful comeback into the side for the Champions Trophy, where he helped India win a historic silver. "Sachin paaji has been an inspiration for me. He helped me a lot in the last 3-4 months, which were tough," Sardar told reporters during his first interaction here with reporters post retirement. "There has never been an occasion when he didn't answer my call. After I was ...

As Maini endures below-par F2 stint, Haas F1 remain non-committal on his F1 test

Young Indian racer Arjun Maini is still nowhere close to testing a Haas car despite being the Formula 1 team's developmental driver since 2017. Maini has had a forgettable maiden season in Formula 2, which is a step below Formula 1. The 20-year-old Maini and Jehan Daruvala are the two Indians who are aiming to break into Formula 1. They both are still far from achieving their goal, having not done enough in the junior single seater series to attract attention of Formula 1 teams. "We still have not defined our plan for testing at the end of the season. That depends a lot on the plans from Pirelli what to do. So, the honest answer is, we don't know yet," Haas team principal Guenther Steiner told PTI when asked about the possibility of Maini getting his much awaited test run. Though Daruvala, who is into his second Formula 3 season, has done well in patches, Maini has had it rough in Formula 2 with his team, Trident, languishing at the bottom of the standings. With two rounds remaining, .

Asia Cup: Bangladesh elect to bat against Sri Lanka

Bangladesh elected to bat after winning the toss in the opening encounter of the Asia Cup, here Saturday. Teams Bangladesh: Tamim Iqbal, Liton Das, Shakib Al Hasan, Mushfiqur Rahim, Mohammed Mithun, Mahmudullah, Mashrafe Mortaza (captain), Mosaddek Hossain, Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Rubel Hossain, Mustafizur Rahaman Sri Lanka: Upul Tharanga, Dhananjaya de Silva, Kusal Perera (WK), Kusal Mendis, Angelo Mathews (capt), Thisara Perera, Dasun Shanaka, Lasith Malinga, Suranga Lakmal, MA Aponso, Dilruwan Perera.

Sarita ends with bronze in Polish boxing tourney

Former world champion L Sarita Devi (60kg) signed off with a bronze medal at the 13th Silesian Open Boxing Tournament for women in which India's junior boxers ruled the ring in Gliwice, Poland. Sarita, also a multiple-time Asian champion a former Asian Games bronze-medallist, was joined by Lovlina Borgohain (69kg) and Pooja Rani (81kg) in the list of those whose campaign came to an end in the semifinals on Friday. The celebrated M C Mary Kom (48kg) and Manisha (54kg) are the only ones to have made the finals, scheduled Saturday night, among the senior Indian boxers, while former youth world champion Jyoti Gulia (51kg) is in the youth finals. Sarita lost 0-5 to Kazakhstan's Karina Ibragimova, a decision which the Indian contingent felt did not reflect fairly on the contest. "It was a controversial decision. Sarita was clearly better but judges did not rule in her favour, even the crowd got behind her after the loss because everyone could see," said one of the coaches travelling with ...

Pinki Jangra in final, 5 others in semis of Turkish boxing tournament

Former Commonwealth Games bronze-medallist Pinki Jangra advanced to the finals, while five other Indian boxers made the semifinals of the Ahmet Comart Tournament in Istanbul, Turkey. Jangra (51kg) defeated former world champion Steluta Duta in the quarterfinals 5-0 before getting the better of Australian Taylah Robertson in the semis to make the summit clash on Friday night. Advancing to the semifinals were world silver-medallist Sonia Lather (57kg), Monika (48kg) Meena Kumari (54kg), Simranjit Kaur (64kg) and Bhagyawati Kachari (81kg). Sonia, also a two-time Asian silver-medallist who lost in the quarterfinals of the Asian Games last month, defeated home favourite Binnaz Ozdemir in a dominating performance that forced the referee to rule in her favour in the second round itself. Monika, a national bronze-medallist, pulled off a 4-1 triumph over Bulgarian Emi-Mari Todorova, while Meena out-punched another local hope in Tugcenaz Surmeneli. Simranjit, a former national medallist, scored