Page 1711 - Sports
Faheem Ashraf keen to represent Pakistan in all formats
Pakistan all-rounder Faheem Ashraf has said that he is eager to cement his place permanently in all three formats of the game after receiving a maiden call-up in the national Test squad against England and Ireland.The 24-year-old was included in the 16-man Test squad announced by national chief selector Inzamam-ul-Haq on the back of some impressive performances in the shorter formats of the game.Besides Ashraf, current chief selector Inzamam-ul-Haq nephew Imam-ul-Haq, opener Fakhar Zaman, batsmen Usman Salahuddin and Saad Ali are the other four uncapped members to have got maiden Test call-ups.Ecstatic by his inclusion in the Test squad, Ashraf said that it was a dream for him to play in the longest format of the game, which he describes as the 'ultimate challenge ' of the game."It's the dream of every cricketer to play for your country at the Test level, which is the ultimate challenge. I am extremely happy to be selected in the Test squad," the Express Tribune quoted the ...
World Cup spurs soccer trading card frenzy in Peru
The return of the Peruvian national team to the World Cup after a 36-year absence has spurred a boom in sales of player trading cards and stickers across this South American nation.
Mönchengladbach thrash clueless Wolfsburg
Borussia Mönchengladbach remained in the hunt for European slots with a 3-0 win against Wolfsburg, who sit uncomfortably close to the Bundesliga drop zone.
Leganes, Deportivo in goalless stalemate
Leganes will have to wait at least another week to assure themselves of staying in the top tier of Spanish football after managing only a 0-0 draw against 18th-place Deportivo La Coruna here.
Kuwait thrash Maldives in ICC World T20 Asia Qualifier 'A'
The ICC World Twenty20 Asia Qualifier 'A' began with hosts Kuwait registering a resounding 102 -run win over the Maldives in the opening game at Sulaibiya Cricket Ground last evening.Kuwait, having won the toss and electing to bat against underdogs Maldives, made the worst possible start, losing two wickets off consecutive deliveries in the first over, including that of captain Kashif Sharif, to leave them reeling at 1-2.Opener Usman Waheed was then joined by Ali Zaheer and the two steadied the ship for Kuwait, putting together a cautious but vital 60-run partnership, firmly sowing the seeds of recovery and laying the foundations for a late innings assault.The wickets of Ali Zaheer and Usman Waheed in quick succession brought the hard-hitting Mohammad Asghar to the crease along with Ravija Sandaruwan.Asghar, after an initial consolidation period, teed off scoring 66 runs off just 38 balls to inject some much-needed impetus into the Kuwait innings. He was well supported by Ravija, who .
Nadal faces Dimitrov for Monte Carlo Masters final spot
World number one Rafael Nadal will aim to cement his spot in the finals of the Monte Carlo Masters when he crosses sword with fourth-seed Grigor Dimitrov of Bulgaria in their last-four clash here on Saturday.The Spanish tennis maestro had earlier stormed into the semi-finals of the tournament after brushing aside Dominic Thiem of Austria 6-0, 6-2 in a one-sided last-eight clash of the men's singles event that lasted one hour and seven minutes.It should be noted that 16-time Grand Slam champion Nadal is bidding for an 11th Monte Carlo title and a record 31st Masters title.Dimitrov, on the other hand, outplayed Belgian tennis star David Goffin 6-4, 7-6 (7-5) to book his place in the last-four of the tournament for the first time.Nadal and Dimitrov have met each other previously on 11 occasions and the world number one emerged victorious in ten of those.Dimitrov's only win against Nadal came in Beijing at the tail-end of the 2016 season, when the Bulgarin star put in an excellent ...
Monte Carlo Masters:Bopanna-Vasselin eye final berth
Indian tennis ace Rohan Bopanna and his French partner Edouard Roger-Vasselin will aim to book their place in the finals of the Monte Carlo Masters when they head into their last-four clash of the men's doubles event here on Saturday.The Indo-French duo will cross swords with third-seed pair of Austria's Oliver Marach and Croatia's Mate Pavic for a place in the summit showdown.Yesterday, Bopanna and Roger-Vaselli eased past the Colombian team of Juan Sebastian Cabal and Robert Farah, who reached the Australian Open final this year, 6-4, 6-4 in a one-sided quarter-final clash.Earlier, the unseeded Indo-French duo had to work hard as they bounced back from a set down and saved three match points to clinch a 3-6, 6-4, 11-9 over two-time Grand Slam champions Jamie Murray and Bruno Soares in one hour and 22 minutes and seal a last-eight spot.In another semi-finals clash of Monte Carlo, the fourth-seeded Bryan brothers will also take on Italian team of Simone Bolelli and Fabio Fognini for a
Jr Women Hockey C'ship: Andhra Pradesh hammer Goans 6-0
Andhra Pradesh produced a rich vein of form as they thrashed Goans 6-0 in their opening Pool A match of the 8th Hockey India Junior Women National Championship 2018 (B Division) here last evening.Goals for Andhra Pradesh were scored by captain Mary Lotla (18', 42'), Spandana Bokam (44', 60'), Vara Lakshmi Uppidi (5') and Bhavani Madugula (54').Whereas, in another Pool A encounter, it was Madhya Bharat who played out a 1-1 draw with Bengaluru Hockey Association. It was Navya DJ (7') who scored for Bengaluru Hockey Association while Isha Agrawal (60') scored for Madhya Bharat.In Pool B, Bihar beat Manipur 8-0. Goals for Bihar were scored by Kajal Lakra (5', 19', 20', 24', 38', 45'), Riya Kumari (33') and Mahima Kumari (70'). Another Pool B match saw Hockey defeat Puducherry 20-0 in an emphatic manner.Goals for Assam were scored by Maxima Xalxo (9', 27', 62', 65'), Sakshi (23', 53', 61', 64'), skipper Priyanshi Singh (1', 3', 52'), Milka Surin (20',30', 30'), Elina Tigga (10', 42'), ...
Stolen UEFA Europa League trophy recovered
The UEFA Europa League trophy has been recovered, two days after it was stolen, after a private exhibition in Mexico's Guanajuato state, officials said.
Opportunity knocks for Arsenal in post-Wenger era
Arsene Wenger's decision to step down as Arsenal manager after 22 years in charge marks the end of an era, but also a huge opportunity for the Gunners to reestablish themselves among the elite of English and European football. Tributes poured in from players past and present on Friday, as well as Wenger's adversaries over the past two decades, such as Alex Ferguson and Jose Mourinho, for his longevity and the revolution in English football he helped inspire. However, there is no hiding the fact the Frenchman has bowed out now due to increasing calls for him to go from frustrated fans as Arsenal slipped further behind their Premier League rivals in recent seasons. Arsenal haven't won the league since Wenger's crowing achievement in leading "The Invincibles" to an unbeaten league season in 2003/04. Last season was the first time in 20 years the club didn't qualify for the Champions League, but they haven't got beyond the last 16 in that competition since 2010. Languishing in sixth, ...
Farah faces tough examination in London Marathon
British track legend Mo Farah had few peers in distance championship running but he may find a few better than him on the road in tomorrow's London Marathon. The 35-year-old -- who achieved the Olympic double of 5000/10000 metres champion twice -- couldn't hope for a better send off in his second tilt at his home marathon than for Queen Elizabeth II due to press the start button from a specially erected podium at Windsor Castle. However, with the likes of Kenya's Olympic champion and two-time London Marathon winner Eliud Kipchoge, Ethiopian legend Kenenisa Bekele and Kenyan defending champion Daniel Wanjiru in the field Farah will have his work cut out to make an impression. The warm temperatures expected won't ruffle Farah -- although those 'fun runners' who are planning to dress up as a knight and Paddington Bear have been advised to have a rethink over the sagacity of donning those outfits -- but he is realistic about his chances. "Acceptable for me would be knowing I mixed in with
Guardiola tells champions Man City to focus on points record
Pep Guardiola has indicated pursuing a Premier League record points total may be the best way to keep his Manchester City players focused over the final five matches of the season. City are at home to Swansea tomorrow, having secured Guardiola's first English league title last weekend, as they won at Tottenham Hotspur and closest challengers Manchester United suffered a shock defeat at home to bottom-of-the-table West Bromwich Albion. The manager, though, is concerned his squad's performance levels will drop, now that they effectively have only pride left to play for this term. That is why he feels that chasing Chelsea's Premier League record of 95 points in a season, set in 2004/05, is a useful target for City, who are currently on 87. "In the past, I have won the league at Barcelona and Bayern Munich with five, six, seven games to go, and the remaining games were not good," Guardiola said Friday. "We tried to tell the players, 'Come on, keep going', but we were not able to keep ...
Indian-American teen wins $100K in Jeopardy college quiz contest
Indian-American teenager, Dhruv Gaur, has won the $100,000 Jeopardy college quiz championship.
CGF President calls on Commonwealth heads to back sports development
The Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF) President, Louise Martin CBE, on Friday praised the success of the Games Athletes Programme (GAP) that led to five of the Commonwealth's smallest nations winning their first ever Commonwealth medals at the 21st Commonwealth Games in Gold Coast, earlier this month.A record number of medal-winning nations and territories - 43 out of the 71 teams - took their places on the podium in southeast Queensland.Five countries - Vanuatu, Cook Islands, Solomon Islands, British Virgin Islands and Dominica - won Commonwealth medals for the first time; a direct result of the GAP development fund they received in the years leading up to the Games.At a Commonwealth Sports Breakfast to cap off the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in London, England, the CGF President called on the 53 Government heads to capitalise on the "recipe for success" of the GAP initiative to help boost the prospects of sports development, and future medal success, in their .
USA Cricket announces election process details
The election process for the inaugural Board of Directors for USA Cricket was announced on Friday, marking another important step towards their application for the International Cricket Council (ICC) membership.The elections will begin on May 18, where seven constituent Director positions will be open.This will be comprised of three individual directors, two player directors, one club director and one league director.The seven constituent directors will then appoint the three independent directors recommended by the Nominating and Governance Committee, which was announced last week.The nominations are now open for members seeking to stand in the USA Cricket elections.The body invited prospective directors to submit their application and a one-page candidate statement by May 8.Meanwhile, the final list of all eligible candidates for the election will be announced on May 13.The details of the election process follow last week's announcement of the Nominating and Governance Committee ...
IPL '18: Watson's 106 floors Rajasthan Royals
Opener Shane Watson's blistering 106 and some tight bowling helped Chennai Super Kings (CSK) to hand the Rajasthan Royals (RR) a 64-run defeat and to go to the top of the table at the Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium here on Friday.Earlier, RR led by Ajinkya Rahane won the toss and put CSK into bat first, in what was the first match between the two sides in three years after serving a two-year ban in the wake of the 2013 spot-fixing scandal.Playing their first 'home' game after matches were shifted out from Chennai, due to ongoing Cauvery protests, Watson, who was with the opponent franchise from 2008-2015, thrashed the Rajasthan bowlers all over the park as he helped to take Chennai into a dominant position right from the beginning.The 36-year-old swashbuckling Australian all-rounder gave Chennai a rapid start as the team raced to 50 runs in less than five overs, courtesy a dropped chance in the very first over of the game.With no assistance on offer, the RR bowlers needed to .
IPL: Chennai crush Rajasthan by 64 runs
Opener Shane Watson hit a fantastic 106-run knock as Chennai Super Kings (CSK) thrashed Rajasthan Royals (RR) by 64 runs here on Friday to register their third win in four games in the Indian Premier League (IPL).
TTFI recommends Manika Batra for Arjuna Award
Table Tennis Federation of India (TTFI) on Friday has recommended Manika Batra's name for Arjuna award.Batra has won four medals - two golds, one silver and one bronze in the recently concluded Commonwealth Games in Australia's Gold Coast.Another table tennis player, Harmit Desai's name was also recommended by the federation.Harmeet Desai, along with his teammate Sathiyan Gnanasekaran, won gold in a doubles event.On that note, India ended their campaign at the Commonwealth Games 2018 with 66 medals (26 Gold, 20 Silver and 20 Bronze).
Watson strikes ton in CSK's big win at new home
Seasoned all-rounder Shane Watson smashed his third IPL century as Chennai Super Kings moved to their new 'home' in style by producing a comprehensive 64-run win over Rajasthan Royals, here tonight. CSK, forced out of Chennai due to the Cauvery dispute, were shepherded by the 36-year-old Australian, who hammered 106 from 57 balls to lead his side to a challenging 204 for five after being invited to bat. Making full use of a dropped chance in the very first over on a flat track, Watson swung his arms when the ball was pitched outside off and positioned himself nicely against short and straight deliveries to find boundary after boundary. Watson hit nine fours and six sixes in his entertaining knock as another senior player enthralled the fans after Chris Gayle and CSK captain MS Dhoni showed their vintage touch in previous matches of the League. Three early wickets pegged Royals back and they were all out for 140 in 18.3 overs. Royals' chase was spoilt when they lost three key batsmen .
India favourites to win World Cup: Sehwag
Indian cricket team, led by Virat Kohi, will be the favourite to lift next year's ODI World Cup in England, former opener Virender Sehwag avowed today. With the Kohli-led Team India looking solid in batting and a formidable force in bowling, the two-time World Cup winner Sehwag also predicted that they would win their first overseas Test series when they tour Australia later this year. "The kind of ODI team we have, we are favourites to win the 2019 World Cup. Don't you believe it? Absolutely (we are favourites)," Sehwag said during a promotional event. The former swashbuckling India opener said India boast of a perfect combination in batting and bowling department, a luxury they never had in Sourav Ganguly era. "This team has capability to win the Test series outside India with the kind of bowling and batting we have. We just missed to win the Test series in South Africa or else we could have created history." "In our days, we had Srinath, Zaheer Khan, Ajit Agarkar and Ashish Nehra ..