Page 1658 - Sports
Saina and Sindhu are precious diamonds: Coach Gopichand
India's chief badminton coach Pullela Gopichand today called P V Sindhu and Saina Nehwal -- his two most successful pupils -- as "precious diamonds". Last month, Saina claimed her second individual Commonwealth Games gold medal by defeating world number 3 Sindhu 21-18 23-21 in a riveting women's singles final at Gold Coast, Australia. "As a coach I treat both Saina Nehwal and PV Sindhu as precious diamonds. Winning or loosing happens every day at the Academy in Hyderabad. Win or defeat in game encourages the winner and looser to raise the bar and reach higher," said Gopichand. With the win at Gold Coast, Saina, ranked 12th in the world, took her overall head-to-head record against Sindhu to 4-1. The last time these two shuttlers met in the final of an event was at last year's National Badminton Championships where Saina won 21-17 27-25 to clinch her third title. Gopichand was speaking during a felicitation programme organised by FICCI Ladies Organisation (FLO), the women business ...
Sevilla beat Real Sociedad in La Liga tie
Sevilla marked the return of Joaquin Caparros as coach after a 13-year absence with a 1-0 victory in a Spanish top division football match against Real Sociedad, their first win in 10 games.
We can qualify for the knockout stages: Constantine
Moments after the Indian football team were drawn in Group A of the AFC Asian Cup UAE 2019, head coach Stephen Constantine stated that India can "qualify to the knock-out stage" of the Continental championship.
IPL: Resurgent Mumbai look to continue momentum against strong KKR (Preview)
Defending champions Mumbai Indians (MI) will look to make the most of their morale-boosting victory over Kings XI Punjab and continue their resurgence when they lock horns with Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in an Indian Premier League (IPL) clash at the Wankhede Stadium here on Sunday.
Atletico's Simeone receives 4-match touchline ban
Atletico Madrid coach Diego Simeone has been banned from the touchline for the next three European matches after being sent to the stands during the first leg of his club's Europa League semi-final against Arsenal.
China's Liang breaks women's 50km race walking world record
China's Liang Rui powered to a 4:04:36 victory in the women's 50km race at the 2018 IAAF World Race Walking Team Championships here on Saturday, breaking the world record in what was just her first race over the distance.
Toure to leave Man City at season end: Guardiola
Ivorian midfielder Yaya Toure will leave Manchester City at the end of the season, coach Pep Guardiola has announced.
Kings XI Punjab, RR look to break winless run
Mid-table side Kings XI Punjab will look to get their campaign back on track after a couple of defeats when they lock horns with bottom-placed Rajasthan Royals in the Indian Premier League here tomorrow. While Kings XI Punjab are placed fourth in the table with five wins and three losses from eight appearances, inaugural edition winners Rajasthan Royals are last with three victories and five defeats. Like KXIP, RR too are coming off two straight defeats, but the Punjab outfit is placed much than its next opponents and is pretty much in with a chance to qualify for the playoffs. While they would regret letting Mumbai Indians off the hook at the Holkar International Stadium last night, Kings XI Punjab have a side capable of making a turnaround. For a team that boasts someone like Chris Gayle at the top of the order, it can always afford to hope. That the big-hitting Jamaican has been in red-hot form in this ongoing edition of the league, only adds to their confidence. With his ...
Javelin thrower Neeraj snaps own record at Diamond League
Indian javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra, who clinched gold at the recently-concluded 21st edition of the Commonwealth Games in Gold Coast, missed on a bronze medal but shattered his own national record by finishing fourth at the season-opening leg of the IAAF Diamond League here last evening.The 20-year-old clocked a throw of 87.43 m in his second attempt to break his previously owned national record mark of 86.48 metres.Neeraj, who had earlier won CWG Gold with a throw of 86.47m--his previous season's best, posted a throw of 81.17m in his first attempt.Olympic champion Thomas Rohler bagged gold with his season's best effort of 91.78 m, while world champion Johannes Vetter (91.56m) and Andreas Hoffman (90.08m) settled for silver and bronze respectively.Neeraj, who hails from Khandra village of Panipat, had earlier not only added his name in an elite list of Indian athletes to clinch gold in their CWG debut but also became the first Indian javelin thrower to clinch gold in the 2018 ...
NZ Open: Shuttler Praneeth bows out in semis
Ace Indian shuttler B. Sai Praneeth suffered a major blow as he crashed out of the New Zealand Open Badminton Championship after going down against second-seed Jonatan Christie of Indonesia here on Saturday.After comfortably winning the first game, Praneeth failed to capitalise on it and slumped to a 21-14, 19-21, 8-21 defeat at the hands of his Indonesian opponent in a thrilling semi-final clash of the men's singles event that lasted a little more than one hour.Praneeth clinched the first game easily and was also leading the second game, looking likely to reach the finals of the tournament.However, after the score was tied at 19-19 in the second game, Christie bounced back strongly and never looked back to clinch the deciding third game 21-8 and cruise into the finals.With Praneeth's defeat, India's challenge at the tournament also folded.Yesterday, Sameer Verma crashed out of the tournament after slumping to straight-games defeat at the hands of top-seed Lin Dan of China.In the ...
India can qualify to knockout stage of AFC Asia Cup, says coach
After India were drawn in Group A of the AFC Asian Cup UAE 2019, Indian football team national coach Stephen Constantine stated that India can "qualify to the knock-out stage" of the Continental Championship.India have been clubbed with hosts United Arab Emirates, Thailand and Bahrain in Group A of the AFC Asian Cup UAE 2019, the official draw for which was held at the iconic Burj Khalifa in Dubai on Friday."I think it's a group from where we can qualify to the knock-out stage. I won't say it's an easy group but we have the ability to win against some of these teams and on our day, we can beat most of them," Constantine,who attended the draw along with Team manager Shanmugam Venkatesh, told the AIFF website."All these teams will give us different kinds of problems and we have to be prepared before facing them in the AFC Asian Cup UAE 2019," he added.Meanwhile, captain Sunil Chhetri along with Iranian legend Ali Daei, iconic Chinese player Sun Jihai and Philippines' star Philip James ..
Sai Praneeth goews down fighting in semifinals
Indian shutter B Sai Praneeth went down fighting to second seed Jonatan Christie of Indonesia in the men's singles semifinals of the New Zealand Open badminton here today. The 25-year-old Sai Praneeth was the lone Indian left in fray in the tournament after he entered the semifinals of the men's singles event yesterday. However, his run came to an end after he succumbed to a 14-21 21-19 21-8 loss in a match that lasted over an hour. The Indian, who was seeded third for this tournament, won the first game comfortably and was leading the second game for a while. But Christie fought back, eventually winning two straight points when the score was tied at 19-19 to win the second game and force the match into a deciding third game. Praneeth struggled to compete against his Indonesian rival in the third game, as Christie dominated it to enter the final. Yesterday, Praneeth hardly broke a sweat as he took just 28 minutes to quell the challenge of Sri Lanka's Niluka Karunaratne 21-7 21-9 in ...
Jr Men National Hockey C'ship:Punjab, Haryana reach finals
Punjab booked their place in the finals of the 8th Hockey India Junior Men National Championship 2018 (A Division) after beating Odisha 3-1 in the penalty shootout in their last-four clash here last evening.After the scores remained tied at 1-1 after regulation time in the first semi-final clash, the match went to penalty shootout.Odisha opened the scoreline in the 26th minute when Ajit Ekka scored via penalty corner giving them the lead through the first half. Punjab levelled scores in the second half when Sudarshan Singh scored in 47th minute.Whereas, in the Penalty Shootout, only Suman Beck could score for Odisha while Punjab had Gursahibjit Singh, Prabhjeet Singh and Karajwinder Singh scoring to give them the win.In the second semi-final, Haryana beat Gangpur-Odisha 3-2. Haryana scored as early as in the third minute via Abhishek. Gangpur-Odisha levelled the score in the 18th minute via skipper Pratap Lakra.Haryana took the lead when skipper Mandeep Mor scored via penalty corner .
Resurgent Mumbai Indians take on confident KKR
Looking, at last, like a team wanting to defend its title, Mumbai Indians' road to redemption in the Indian Premier League faces another tricky test, as they host a formidable Kolkata Knight Riders here tomorrow. The defending champions seemed resurgent after a tense win over Kings XI Punjab, though their play-off hopes were still hanging by a thread, thanks to a spate of reverses over the past few weeks. The 21-ball 56-run blitzkrieg between Krunal Pandya and Rohit Sharma in Indore is history and MI will next need to tame KKR, who have a reputation of being fierce opponents, at the Wankhade Stadium. MI's under-performing batsmen finally clicked last night against Kings XI and will look to replicate their performance against another top of the table outfit. Mumbai jumped to the fifth spot having won three of their nine games while KKR are sitting comfortable in the third position. The hosts have to win all their remaining five games to make it to the play-offs. For Mumbai Indians, ...
India clubbed with UAE, Thailand and Bahrain in AFC Asia Cup
India have been clubbed with hosts United Arab Emirates, Thailand and Bahrain in Group A of the AFC Asian Cup UAE 2019, the official draw for which was held at the Armani Hotel Ballroom at the iconic Burj Khalifa in Dubai on Friday.National Team captain Sunil Chhetri, Iranian legend Ali Daei, iconic Chinese player Sun Jihai and Philippines' star Philip James Younghusband coordinated the picks for the four respective pots as they helped AFC General Secretary Dato Windsor John to conduct the draw.Besides, national team coach Stephen Constantine and Team Manager Shanmugam Venkatesh were present on the occasion.The top 24 teams from all over Asia including hosts UAE were drawn into six groups of four teams each. Teams drawn together in the group will play each other once and the top two from each group will qualify to the Round of 16 along with the best four third-placed teams.The Continental Championship will be held across eight stadia in four cities in the UAE -- Abu Dhabi, Dubai, ...
India can qualify for Asian Cup knockout stage: Constantine
India have the ability to qualify for the knockout stage of the 2019 Asian Cup, said national football team coach Stephen Constantine, giving wings to his players' aspirations, quite appropriately, from the world's tallest building -- the Burj Khalifa. India were last night clubbed with hosts United Arab Emirates, Thailand and Bahrain in Group A of the AFC Asian Cup, the draw for which was held at the iconic Burj Khalifa here. "I think it's a group from where we can qualify to the knockout stage. I won't say it's an easy group but we have the ability to win against some of these teams and on our day, we can beat most of them," Constantine, who attended the draw along with team manager Shanmugam Venkatesh, said. "All these teams will give us different kinds of problems and we have to be prepared before facing them in the AFC Asian Cup UAE 2019," he added. The last time India participated in the continental tournament, in 2011, they were thrashed by South Korea, Australia and Bahrain, ..
Wenger bids farewell to stadium he helped build By
Arsene Wenger will bid farewell to a stadium he helped to build in more ways than one when he leads Arsenal at the Emirates for the final time at home to Burnley tomorrow. Wenger's final season after 22 years in charge is destined to end in disappointment after Thursday's Europa League semi-final exit to Atletico Madrid. Sixth-placed Arsenal are already out of the running for a top-four finish, and could even finish below their visitors this weekend in seventh with a poor return from Wenger's final three games in charge. Tributes will be paid to the Frenchman at full-time on Sunday with Arsenal's players even embarking on an end of season lap of honour. Once again, though, it will be a parade without a trophy as it often has been since Arsenal moved to the Emirates in 2006. The success Wenger produced in his first decade at the club, winning two doubles and 'The Invincibles' unbeaten season on course to another Premier League triumph in 2003/04, created the demand to move to a ...
After Roman conquest, Liverpool face Battle of the Bridge
Fresh from booking their place in the Champions League final after a dramatic night in Rome, Liverpool's European heroes return to the fight for a Premier League top four finish when they face Chelsea tomorrow. Jurgen Klopp's side are still on a high following a 4-2 defeat at Roma on Wednesday that clinched a 7-6 aggregate success in the Champions League semi-finals. Liverpool will take on holders Real Madrid in their eighth European Cup final appearance on May 26 in Kiev. But first the Reds have to ensure they feature in next season's Champions League. Third placed Liverpool are six points ahead of fifth placed Chelsea, but they would give renewed hope to the Blues if they are beaten at Stamford Bridge. A Liverpool win this weekend would make it impossible for Chelsea to catch them, ensuring the Reds will qualify for next season's Champions League with a game in spare. Even a draw in west London would effectively seal their top four place because Liverpool have a vastly superior goal
Guardiola tells City to savour title success as records loom
Pep Guardiola and Manchester City continue their assault on the Premier League record books when they face struggling Huddersfield at the Etihad Stadium tomorrow, with the manager telling players and supporters alike to enjoy a once in a lifetime occasion. City captain Vincent Kompany, fit and back for the game following a minor injury, will lift the Premier League trophy at the end of the fixture, thereby allowing the club to formally celebrate a title that was confirmed three weeks earlier. With City's success being all but a certainty since the turn of the calendar year, virtually the only significant interest, for neutrals at least, has surrounded their re-writing of the Premier League's record books, with more marks potentially falling to Guardiola's men this weekend. Victory will take City past the record points tally, the 95 recorded by Chelsea in 2004/05, while two goals will better the mark of 103 scored by Chelsea in 2009/10. Yet another win would also set a new best for the
Javelin thrower Neeraj improves his national record
India's javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra improved his national record mark with a throw of 87.43 metres to finish fourth in the season-opening leg of the IAAF Diamond League here on Friday.