Page 161 - Sports
Bangladesh seek resurgence against inconsistent Sri Lanka
Smarting from consecutive defeats, Bangladesh will be look to get their World Cup campaign back on track when they take on an inconsistent Sri Lanka here Tuesday. Bangladesh made a perfect start to their World Cup campaign, posting their highest one-day international score of 330-6 during the 21-run win over South Africa. However, the Tigers were not able to take forward the winning momentum and were handed a two-wicket loss by New Zealand followed by a massive a 106-run defeat to hosts England. In the batting department, wicketkeeper Mushfiqur Rahim has been impressive but openers Soumya Sarkar and Tamim Iqbal have squandered their starts, failing to play impactful knocks. Star all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan, who is in fine form with the bat, having scored two half-centuries and a hundred in the tournament, is expected to play the key role again for his side. However, Bangladesh's main concern will be their bowling that came unstuck in their previous game against England who amassed ...
Zampa was using hand warmers, Finch clarifies on ball-tampering murmurs
Australia captain Aaron Finch said Adam Zampa was merely using hand-warmers in his pocket during the World Cup match against India, rejecting social media speculation that the leg-spinner might have been tampering with the ball. A few pictures of Zampa showed him putting his hand in his pocket just before a delivery and social media was abuzz with talk of ball tampering. With the last year's scandal which led to bans on Steve Smith David Warner still casting a shadow on the Aussies, skipper Finch had to clarify after his team's 36-run loss to India. "I haven't seen the photos, but I know that he has hand warmers in his pocket. He has them every single game he plays. I honestly haven't seen them, so I can't comment too much on it. But I know for a fact that he has hand warmers every game," Finch told mediapersons. Zampa, who was a revelation on Australia's limited-overs tour of India, was taken to task by the Indian openers and was out of the attack after giving away 50 runs in six ...
Brazil routs Honduras 7-0 in Copa tuneup
Philippe Coutinho helped Brazil prepare for a Copa America without Neymar after 10-man Honduras were comprehensively thrashed 7-0 in Porto Alegre on Sunday. The Paris St.Germain superstar will miss the tournament on home soil which starts on Friday after injuring his ankle against Qatar last Wednesday. But with Barcelona's Coutinho providing an assist and a penalty strike and the likes of Richarlison and Gabriel Jesus also impressing by getting on the scoresheet against the outclassed Hondurans, who had Romell Quioto red carded in the first half. Jesus and Richarlison, who both scored against the Qatari's in Brasilia, were particularly lively once again along with the excellent Coutinho to prove the Selecao still have plenty of options in attack despite Neymar sitting on the sidelines. Brazil made three changes from the side which beat Qatar - Ajax star David Neres was brought in to replace Neymar while Liverpool's Champions League winning keeper Alisson Becker and PSG's Thiago Silva .
Ronaldo still hungry for more glory with Portugal
Cristiano Ronaldo insisted he has no immediate plans to retire from international football after helping Portugal lift the inaugural Nations League on Sunday. Ronaldo, 34, was a peripheral figure as Goncalo Guedes's goal won an underwhelming final against the Netherlands 1-0 in Porto. But after sitting out the group stage of the Nations League on a hiatus from international football, Ronaldo played a huge part in getting his country to the final by scoring a hat-trick in Wednesday's semi-final against Switzerland. And with a host of exciting young talent, led by Manchester City's Bernardo Silva, who picked up player of the tournament, Ronaldo is keen to hang around for the chance at more international glory as Portugal look to defend their European Championship title next year. "Portugal has won important things like Euro 2016 and now the Nations League. It may seem like an easy job but it's hard, it takes a lot of dedication and willingness," Ronaldo told Portuguese TV station ...
West Indies 'just another game' for England's Archer
England's Jofra Archer has insisted it will be "just another game of cricket" should the Barbados-born fast bowler face his native West Indies in the World Cup. With Archer, who only qualified for England earlier this year, taking an impressive three for 29 in a 106-run win over Bangladesh in Cardiff on Saturday, it seems inconceivable, barring injury, that the tournament hosts leave him out of their side for Friday's match against the West Indies in Southampton. Archer, whose father is English, was effectively lost to the West Indies when he moved to county side Sussex after overlooking the paceman for the Under-19 World Cup four years ago. "It's just same as the last game, just another game of cricket," said Archer. "I know them pretty good. I played with a few of the guys at Under-19, so it will be good to actually play against them this time." Archer's ability to routinely top speeds of 90 mph makes him a hugely valuable asset and that speed was on show when a ball that clean ...
Kohli, Finch question the use of zing bails
Virat Kohli and Aaron Finch questioned the use of zing bails at the ICC Men's Cricket World Cup following the fifth incident in 10 days of a batsman getting bowled but the light-up bails not being dislodged.Veteran wicket-keeper MS Dhoni inspected how firmly the stumps had been hammered into the pitch after batsman David Warner edged the ball onto his foot and watched the ball roll back onto his stumps but the zing bails remained intact during a match between India and Australia on Sunday."This is not something which you expect at the international level. I think with the technology it's great. The lights come on and you know it's very precisely when you actually make something happen with the stumps," Kohli said after India's 36-run win over Australia at The Oval."But you literally have to smash the stumps really hard - and I'm saying that as a batsman ... and these are fast bowlers. These are not medium-pace bowlers," he added.This incident comes after West Indies' Chris Gayle, ...
We ticked all boxes, says Dhawan
Opener Shikhar Dhawan hailed India's performance in all three departments of the game after his stylish hundred set up the comprehensive 36-run win over defending champion Australia here. "It's a great sign for our team and I'm happy with this man of the match award," said Dhawan, who hit a 109-ball 117-run innings here Sunday. "Very happy with the performance overall. We are a great fielding side, we took great catches. We have a good bowling side, great spinners as well." While Dhawan scored his 17th ODI hundred, Rohit Sharma continued his good run with a 70-ball 57 and skipper Virat Kohli hit 82 off 77 balls as India posted a massive 352 for 5. In reply, Australia were bowled out for 316. "We work really hard in the nets, our process is very strong that's why the results are going our way. We ticked all the boxes today," Dhawan said. "We knew they are a great side and the match will go down to the wire. We need to continue ticking the boxes in upcoming matches." India will next ...
Anand beats Wesley So, joint fifth at Norway chess
Former world champion Viswanathan Anand pulled off an easy win over Wesley So of United States to be joint fifth after the fifth round of the Altibox Norway chess tournament here. Anand proved why he is hailed as the speed king when he easily managed a draw in the Armageddon game as black and won 1.5-0.5 against Wesley. With his third victory on the trot after two losses in the first two rounds, Anand took himself to joint fifth position in the super tournament that is for the first time trying out a format that gives decisive results in each round. For Anand, the writing was on the wall in the Armageddon where he had seven minutes compared to 10 that Wesley got being white. The 'draw-odds' being order of the day for black, Wesley was expected to go for the King. However, the Filipino-turned-American decided to fight on strategic grounds that did not work as a good idea. Wesley chose an unorthodox queen pawn game wherein Anand had no troubles equalising out of the opening. The pieces .
We're extra motivated, had a point to prove against Australia: Kohli
Skipper Virat Kohli said India were "extra motivated" and "had a point to prove" after his team notched up a convincing 36-run win over Australia in the World Cup, avenging their bitter ODI series loss at home earlier this year. "We had a point to prove. We were more motivated to win today because of the fact that we lost the series in India, being 2-0 up, and there was no Mitchell Starc, either. So him (Starc) coming in makes their bowling line-up even stronger," Kohli said. "I couldn't have asked for a better game in all three departments, set the tone the way we wanted to bat up-front," he said at the post-match press conference. India posted a massive 352 for 5, riding on a professional performance by the top-order led by Shikhar Dhawan (117). In reply, Australia were dismissed for 316. With wins over South Africa and Australia, India are on a roll but Kohli said he doesn't want to think too far ahead about the World Cup semi-finals though playing stronger opponents up front has ..
USA hold Asian champion Japan to 2-2 draw, enter semifinals
The USA continued a fine run and held Asian champions Japan 2-2 to qualify for the semi-finals as Pool B toppers in the FIH Series Finals hockey tournament here Monday. The match between world no. 18 Japan and world no. 35 USA witnessed a hard-fought first two quarters but both the teams failed to break the deadlock till half-time. Deegan Huisman (41st, 51st minutes) scored a brace for the Americans to give Japan a few nervous moments. After Kenta Tanaka's goal in the 45th minute, Japan were made to fight hard and finally managed to draw level a minute before the final hooter through a penalty corner conversion by Shuguru Hoshi. Both Japan and USA have seven points from three games but the Americans, who have impressed one and all in the tournament so far, finished on top by virtue of better goal difference. USA, thus, directly qualified for the last-four round, while Japan will have to play the cross-overs to make it to the semifinals.
Zampa uses hand-warmers, says Finch after ball-tampering rumours
Amid all the speculations regarding Australia spinner Adam Zampa tampering the ball on Sunday, skipper Aaron Finch came out in his support saying Zampa uses hand-warmers and have them in every game.Australia was playing against India for their third World Cup match when Zampa was seen putting hands in his pocket and subsequently rubbing the ball."I haven't seen the photos, but I know that he has hand warmers in his pocket. He has them every single game he plays. I honestly haven't seen them (the images), so I can't comment too much on it. But I know for a fact that he has hand warmers every game," Cricket.com.au quoted Finch as saying.Although umpires did not raise any concern regarding the incident, Twitter users started tweeting about the incident and questioned Zampa's action."Does @adamzampa used something on ball during his miserable spell #sandpaper," a Twitter user wrote.Another user tweeted: "Did #AdamZampa temperd the ball? @ICC."Steve Smith and David Warner are still facing .
Laura Marsh completes 100 ODI matches
Laura Marsh completed her 100 One-Day International (ODI) matches for England as she featured in the second ICC Women's Championship match against the West Indies.The 32-year-old received her 100th cap from former England batswoman Lydia Greenway in the presence of her current teammates, including skipper Heather Knight, Natalie Sciver, and Jenny Gunn.Sciver shared a picture of Marsh on Instagram captioned with "100 up for lorni the legend today! Amazing achievement with a few bumps along the way."Gunn welcomed Marsh to the 100 club."Congratulations on your 100th cap old girl. Welcome to the 100 club," she wrote with a picture wherein Gunn, Marsh and Katherine Brunt can be seen with the World Cup 2017 trophy.England Cricket Board commended Marsh, saying "How it feels to get ODI cap. Well played Laura Marsh."Marsh celebrated her milestone on Sunday with magical spin bowling which helped her bag Chedean Nation's wicket. She now has a total of 125 wickets under her belt, including three .
Finch rubbishes Zampa ball-tampering claims
During Australia's World Cup fixture against India, leg-spinner Adam Zampa was seen putting his hands inside his pocket and then rubbing the ball at The Oval in London, thus raising a few eyebrows and leaving people speculating about ball-tampering.
We were outplayed, admits Finch after India drubbing
Skipper Aaron Finch has admitted Australia were outplayed by India in their World Cup fixture which they lost by 36-runs at the Kennington Oval.
We ticked all boxes against Australia: Shikhar Dhawan
Opener Shikhar Dhawan, who smacked a brilliant century against Australia, was extremely happy with the way India performed in all the three departments during their 36-run World Cup win at the Kennington Oval.
Cannot take Bhuvi's ODI performances for granted: Kohli
Skipper Virat Kohli was all praise for medium-pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar, who played a pivotal role in India's clinical win over Australia in their World Cup fixture at the Kennington Oval.
England edge out old rivals as Japan get set for World Cup bow
Former winners Japan will hope to keep pace with group rival England's winning start when the Nadeshiko kick off their Women's World Cup campaign against outsiders Argentina on Monday. England got the better of their old foes Scotland in Nice Sunday, although Phil Neville's side were forced to cling on for a 2-1 victory. A Nikita Parris penalty and Ellen White's strike had England 2-0 up and cruising in the south of France, but Scotland rallied in the second half on their World Cup finals debut and Claire Emslie pulled one back. England, who are among the favourites to win the trophy, took three points in the Group D opener but the victory hinged on the 14th-minute penalty awarded following a VAR review of a handball by Scotland defender Nicola Docherty. "We have been given two talks by referees, and both said that was going to be a penalty," said Neville of the award. "I have not seen it, I didn't look at it, I just trusted that the minute the referee came over, the minute that she ..
McIlroy captures Canadian Open with career-tying 61
Rory McIlroy blitzed the field at the Canadian Open on Sunday, firing a scintillating nine-under 61 to run away with the title by a massive seven strokes less than a week before the US Open. McIlroy, who flirted with a 59, put on a golf clinic, rolling in nine birdies, one eagle and two bogeys for a 22-under 258 total and a dominating victory over runner-ups Shane Lowry of Ireland and American Webb Simpson. "It was awesome," said McIlroy, who claimed his sixth career national open title in his Canadian debut. "I said at the start that I wanted to be aggressive and play with freedom. "This will give me so much confidence. This is a huge tournament and I am so proud of myself. "I am going to take a lot from this and I am so excited for next week (US Open)." The four-time major championship winner tied his career best when he shot a 61 in the third round of the Wells Fargo Championship in 2015. His previous best closing score to win a tournament was a 62 at the Quail Hollow Championship .
Portugal defeat Netherlands to win first Nations League
Portugal added the inaugural Nations League title to their Euro 2016 triumph as Goncalo Guedes's strike on the hour won an underwhelming final 1-0 against the Netherlands. The Dutch defensive pairing of Virgil van Dijk and Matthijs de Ligt largely kept Cristiano Ronaldo quiet, but Valencia winger Guedes proved the match winner as his shot had too much power for Jasper Cillessen in the Netherlands goal. "I am sure this tournament will become a classic because it is a tournament for the entire European family," said Portugal coach Fernando Santos Sunday. "To be the first winner will go down in history. It is a joy to have won the first edition, now we must continue to work and pursue further goals." Portugal had the advantage of an extra day's rest and not being forced to extra time against Switzerland in their semi-final as the Dutch were in seeing off England on Thursday. And the hosts looked the fresher throughout with Ronald Koeman's men jaded at the end of a long season. "If we ...
'This is the wrong world': Vettel fumes at costly penalty
Sebastian Vettel blasted race stewards who imposed a five-second penalty on the Ferrari driver that cost him victory in Sunday's Canadian Grand Prix, accusing them of "stealing the race" from his team. Championship leader Lewis Hamilton was declared the race winner after Vettel was penalised for squeezing his rival off track as he rejoined during a high-speed incident on lap 50. The stewards judged that the Ferrari driver had made an unsafe re-entry and forced Hamilton off the circuit when he rejoined after running off across a strip of grass at the first chicane. "Where could I go?" said an angry Vettel on team radio. "I had nowhere to go... They are stealing the race from us... This is the wrong world. This is not fair." After initially avoiding the post-race ceremonies, the crestfallen Vettel rejoined to appear on the podium where Hamilton pulled him up to join him on the top step. Their mutual respect was clear in front of a capacity crowd at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve. "Well, .