Page 1470 - Sports
Chandimal appeals against ICC's suspension for ball-tampering
Sri Lanka skipper Dinesh Chandimal today appealed against the ICC's decision to suspend him from the third Test of the ongoing tour of the West Indies due to ball-tampering. Chandimal had been charged by the ICC for ball-tampering during the second Test here after video evidence suggested that he applied saliva to the ball shortly after putting what appeared to be a sweet in his mouth. He pleaded not guilty to the charge, before attending the hearing where match referee Javagal Srinath, after utilising the time available to him under the code to make his decision, handed Chandimal the maximum punishment, which was two suspension points and a fine of 100 percent of his match fee. "Dinesh Chandimal has appealed against the match referee's findings that saw him suspended for one Test after being found guilty of changing the condition of the ball," the ICC said on its twitter handle. He was found guilty of changing the condition of the ball during the second day's play of the second Test,
Chandimal appeals against one-Test ban
Sri Lanka skipper Dinesh Chandimal has appealed against the one-match ban handed to him, the International Cricket Council (ICC) confirmed on Thursday.
Andre Russell to lead Jamaica Tallawahs in CPL 2018
West Indies all-rounder Andre Russell will lead Jamaica Tallawahs in the upcoming 2018 edition of the Caribbean Premier League (CPL).After recently returning to cricket following a 12-month suspension, Russell will be re-joining the Tallawahs for the 2018 CPL season and he cannot wait to get started in the tournament."It's a good feeling, honestly, I missed out last year due to one-year suspension. I'm looking forward to it, not just looking forward to play but looking forward to being the captain for the Jamaica Tallawahs, as well and looking forward to doing a good job," Russell said."We have a very good, balanced team. We have a team that is not just about the names, it's all about what they can do as well and how quickly they can change the game. I truly believe in all- rounders in T20 cricket and I think that's what we have. I think we have guys that can bat and bowl and once you have eight guys in a team that can do that, I think you have a good team on paper," he added.This ...
Sonia, Lovlina in semis of Mongolian boxing tourney
Indian boxers Sonia Lather (57kg) and Lovlina Borgohain (69kg) were guaranteed of at least a bronze medal after they advanced to the semifinals of the Ulaanbaatar Cup in Mongolia today. Sonia, a world and asian championship silver-medallist, produced an assured performance to defeat local favourite Myagmar Gundegmaa to make the last-four stage. Joining her in the medal rounds was Lovlina, a gold-medallist at the inaugural India Open earlier this year. She was equally dominating in her 5-0 win over Thailand's Suchada Panich. It was a battle of straight punches between Sonia and Gundegmaa and the Indian was better by a few notches in her clean and impactful hits. Lovlina's rival put up a stronger resistance but lacked in accuracy.
FIFA WC: Argentina face tough Croatia test
Star striker Lionel Messi-powered Argentina will look to shake off their disappointing opening to an ongoing 21st edition of the FIFA World Cup when they lock horns with Croatia in their second match in Group C here at the Nizhny Novgorod Stadium on Thursday.Heading into the clash, two-time champion Argentina will aim to bounce back and put up good show following their dismal 1-1 draw against debutant Iceland in the first match.Argentina, who headed into the showpiece event on the back of their poor form in the qualifying event and injuries, will have to clinch a victory over an experienced and classy Croatia side if they want to hold any chance of qualifying for the round-of-16 in the World Cup.Croatia, on the other hand, are coming off a professional 2-0 win over Nigeria and a win against Argentina would practically mean it would advance to the knockout stage.The two nations had previously met each other four times - including at the World Cup in 1998, which Argentina went on to ...
Neymar back in Brazil training after foot injury fears
Star footballer Neymar was back in training for Brazil after tweaking his ankle the day before, allaying fears he could miss their second World Cup Group E clash with Costa Rica on Friday.
Each day it becomes harder to win World Cup matches: Busquets
Spanish national football team midfielder Sergio Busquets expressed his satisfaction following his team's victory over Iran (1-0) and said each day it becomes harder to win.
Not all matches are going to be won easily: Spain captain
Spain's national football team captain Sergio Ramos said that he is satisfied with his squad's 1-0 triumph over Iran in the 2018 World Cup Russia, adding that they knew the match was going to be a complicated one.
Iran coach says his team deserved a draw against Spain
Iran national football coach Carlos Queiroz praised his team's performance in their loss to Spain and blamed the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) for denying the Asian side a draw.
KSS Shooting C'ship: Om Prakash, Vijay win twin gold
Commonwealth Games 2018 bronze-medalist Om Prakash Mitharwal edged past 2010 CWG gold medalist Omkar Singh by just one point to clinch the gold in the 50m free pistol category at the 18th KSS Memorial Shooting Championship, here last evening.Omkar, serving in the Navy, stayed hot on Om Prakash's heels to score 559 but the army man stayed calm when it mattered most to score 560 and took the first spot on the podium.Another Army man Gurpal Singh, was also not far behind as he bagged the bronze with a score of 553.The Army marksmanship unit comprising of Om Prakash, Gurpal Singh and Jain Singh were in red hot form as they topped the charts with 1654 and annexed the gold in the 50m Free Pistol Team event.Air Force's Monu Tomar lead the charge as his teammates - Ravinder and Deepak Malik - aided in scoring 1641 and took the second spot. Dwindling with a score of 1626, the trio from Navy - Omkar Singh, Saurav Malik and Yogesh Singh - had to settle for a bronze.In the 50m Pistol Junior ...
Can yoga make the cut for Olympics? (Comment)
On a day when yoga is having to jostle for mind space with a hugely popular sporting event like the FIFA World Cup, many fans of the ancient regimen are seriously dreaming up for a world cup of their own. Are they getting too carried away by the euphoria around of the 4th International Day of Yoga? Or is it a case of trusting yoga's extreme versatility to adapt itself to the demands of the time?
Amit, Gaurav enter semis of German boxing tourney
Commonwealth Games medallists Amit Panghal (49kg) and Gaurav Solanki (52kg) advanced to the semifinals and assured themselves of medals at the Chemistry Cup boxing tournament in Halle, Germany. In bouts held last last night, Amit defeated Germany's Christopher Goman 5-0, while Gaurav recorded a comprehensive win over Russia's Vadim Kudriakov by a similar margin. Amit, a silver-medallist from the CWG and a world championships quarterfinalist, has a tough one up next as he will be facing Cuba's Damian Arce Duarte, who got a bye in the opening round. Gaurav, who claimed a gold in the CWG, will be facing Ireland's Conor Quinn in his semifinal bout. However, CWG silver-medallist Manish Kaushik (60kg), bronze-medallist Naman Tanwar (91kg) and former Asian youth silver-medallist Ankush Dahiya (60kg) bowed out after opening-round losses. Manish was defeated 1-4 by Cuba's Lazaro Jorge Alvarez Estrada, while Naman went down to the Netherland's Roy Korving in another split verdict. Also going ...
Halle Open: Federer eyes quarter-final berth
World number one Roger Federer will aim to book his place in the quarter-finals of the ongoing Halle Open when he squares off with French star Benoit Paire in their last-16 clash here on Thursday.Earlier, the 20-time Grand Slam champion began his last week pre-Wimbledon competition with a comfortable 6-3, 6-4 win over Slovene Aljaz Bedene in a one-sided opening-round clash that lasted one hour and 11 minutes.With the win, Federer also extended his grass-court winning streak to 17 matches.The 36-year-old will now look to continue his momentum when he head into his second-round clash against Paire later today.The Swiss tennis maestro, who recently won his 98th title by defeating his Canadian opponent Milos Raonic in straight sets in the finals of Stuttgart Open, is spending his second consecutive week on the grass court in the build-up to the third major of the season i.e Wimbledon.A nine-time Halle Open champion, who recently climbed up to the top ranking for the sixth time in his ...
Pressure on Messi against Croatia after Ronaldo scores again
Lionel Messi is under increased pressure to redeem himself when Argentina face Croatia in Thursday's pivotal match after eternal rival Cristiano Ronaldo scored his fourth goal of the World Cup to send Morocco packing. France will be looking for a second World Cup Group C win against Peru Thursday while Australia need to bounce back from their heart-breaking defeat to Les Bleus against Denmark. Messi's teammates have rallied around their superstar captain after his spot-kick was saved in the 1-1 draw against minnows Iceland on Saturday. Messi is bearing the weight of expectations as Argentina seek a first World Cup trophy since 1986, desperate to crown his glittering career with a major international tournament success. However so far in Russia, Messi has been overshadowed by Ronaldo, who took his tournament goal tally to four on Tuesday with the winner in Portugal's 1-0 defeat of Morocco, which condemned the Africans to an early exit. A defeat against the Luka Modric-led Croatians in .
Who's saying what at the World Cup
AFP Sport picks out some of the best quotes at the World Cup: "He has a great coach." Portugal boss Fernando Santos's tongue-in-cheek response when asked why Cristiano Ronaldo is excelling at this World Cup. "These are our best boys. This matters to them. They love their country. They understand that this is the World Cup." Russia's Deputy Prime Minister Vitaly Mutko after Russia confounded their critics by producing the best ever start of a World Cup host nation with Tuesday's 3-1 win over Egypt following their 5-0 rout of Saudi Arabia. "I don't know why everything is clicking for me at this tournament." Russia's three-goal hero Denis Cheryshev is as bemused as most at the radical turnaround in the team's fortunes. "You'll see him tomorrow (Thursday). Olivier does not have the same style of play as the others. When he's not here, we realise his usefulness even more." France coach Didier Deschamps on striker Olivier Giroud, who did not start their opening win over Australia. "If you ..
Southgate qualities echo Mourinho, Conte says Holland
England coach Steve Holland believes Gareth Southgate is showing the same key qualities he saw in the likes of Jose Mourinho, Rafael Benitez and Antonio Conte at Chelsea. Holland worked with the London club's first team from 2011 before joining Southgate, and England, in 2016. "I think with Gareth, he ticks so many of the boxes that the best that I've worked with tick," Holland said. "Does he understand man-management and getting the best out of players? Yes. Does he understand the value of giving staff ownership and responsibility? Yes absolutely. "Does he have experience of international football at the highest level? Yes. "He has some outstanding qualities and I've really seen him grow into the role." England play Panama on Sunday, looking to build on an encouraging, albeit last-gasp, opening win over Tunisia, but with morale high after Harry Kane's double in Volgograd. The mood was different 18 months ago, when Southgate took over a team rattled by the tumultuous sacking of Sam ..
Queiroz 'concerned' as Iran staff member in hospital after Spain defeat
Iran coach Carlos Queiroz said he was concerned after a member of his staff was taken to hospital during the nail-biting 1-0 World Cup defeat to Spain on Wednesday. A lucky goal by Atletico Madrid striker Diego Costa handed Spain their first win of the tournament following a 3-3 draw with Portugal last week. Iran, 1-0 winners over Morocco, fought a valiant battle in Kazan to maintain hopes of qualifying for the last 16. They next face Portugal in Group B. The Iranians thought they had scored an equaliser, but Saeid Ezatolahi's header was disallowed for offside after the referee consulted the Video Assistant Referee. Portuguese coach Queiroz said: "We're more concerned because one member of our staff is in difficulties from a health point of view after the VAR decision. "He went to the hospital. We hope everything will be alright." "Our prayers go out to him at this moment.
Costa denies 'provocation' but admits to 'lucky' goal
Diego Costa rejected claims he intentionally stamped on Iran goalkeeper Ali Beiranvand during a tense 1-0 win over Iran but admitted his crucial match-winner for Spain came down to "luck". Frustrated throughout by a dogged defensive display from the Lions of Persia, Costa courted first-half controversy when he walked towards the Persepolis shot-stopper as he prepared to kick out the ball. The Atletico Madrid front man got so close he stood on Beiranvand's toes, causing the 'keeper to wince in pain and drop to the ground. The gesture went unpunished by Uruguayan referee Andres Cunha, and Costa went on to find the net with a 54th minute strike that rebounded off the leg of defender Ramin Rezaeian. Asked about his gesture afterwards, Costa lashed out by claiming Iran had been the main culprits. "What game were you watching?" said Costa when probed by a Spanish journalist. "They were provoking us, we were on the grass all the time, you can't just say that because it's your national team."
FifPro slams decision to allow Morocco's Amrabat to play after concussion
The decision to allow Moroccan midfielder Nordin Amrabat to take to the field at the World Cup on Wednesday just five days after suffering concussion has been criticised by players' union FifPro. The Watford winger was substituted in Morocco's opening 1-0 defeat by Iran on Friday after a clash of heads with Vahid Amiri, but started his team's match against Portugal wearing head protection, before throwing it to the side of the pitch in the 16th minute. The treatment of Amrabat after he first went down against Iran was widely ridiculed, with the doctors splashing water over his head before appearing to repeatedly slap him in the face. "This is yet another alarming example of a player being put in harm's way," FifPro said in a statement. FIFA introduced new protocol after the 2014 World Cup, including allowing players to have three-minute checks for concussion on the pitch after head injuries. Those changes came after a number of incidents during the tournament four years ago in Brazil,
He has spoken: Beckham tips England v Argentina final
Former captain David Beckham has tipped England to play Lionel Messi's Argentina in the World Cup final, reflecting rising optimism about the Three Lions' chances after a positive start in Russia. Beckham was speaking at a promotional event in China after England beat Tunisia 2-1 in their opening game, boosting their chances of reaching the knockout rounds. England have long stuttered on the big stage and they last reached the World Cup quarter-finals in 2006, when Beckham was captain. Their only World Cup final was way back in 1966, when they beat Germany at Wembley. "I believe Argentina will play against England in the final," Beckham predicted at an event to promote China's largest collegiate football league. "I think obviously my choice would be England to win the competition, but that's me being biased and passionate about my country," he added. But the former Manchester United and Real Madrid midfielder, a veteran of three World Cups, warned that the road ahead looked hard for ..