Page 1815 - Sports
Amir aims to manage workload by playing fewer Tests
Pakistan's left-arm pacer Muhammad Aamir is aiming to reduce his workload by playing lesser number of Tests. Aamir, who made a comeback to the Pakistan team in early 2015 after serving a five-year ban for spot-fixing, said he will be initially reducing his Test workload to have more impact and play more for Pakistan. I am not saying that I will give up playing Tests. But I will be targeting only the important ones and also try to manage my career in such a way that I can continue to play without any fitness issues for a long while, he said. Insisting, he was human and physically and mentally felt the strain of non-stop cricket since his comeback to the national side, Aamir said in an interview that it was not easy for him to make an international comeback. If I had played those five years my Test count would have been around 60 to 70. But my passion remains for the game and I want to continue playing for a long time for my country and my fans. The only way to do is manage the workload
Women's Football League: Eastern Union edge past Rising Student
Defending champions Eastern Sporting Union clinched their second consecutive win in the Indian Women's Football League 2017-18 when they edged out last year's finalists Rising Student's Club 1-0 at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium here in Shillong last evening.Captain Irom Prameshwori scored the solitary goal of the match after lobbing it over the keeper's head in the third minute. With this win, Eastern sit pretty on top with six points from their two matches.Eastern Sporting Union attacked from the word go as the Prameshwori and Kamala Devi combined well in the opening couple of minutes. It yielded a goal straightaway when Prameshwori lobbed it over the keeper Tikina's head who was left stranded.Defender Sweety found Roja inside the box in the sixth minute but the striker was unable to control the ball. Kamala too unleashed a shot of her own in the 13th but it hit the side-netting only.Slowly but surely, Rising made a comeback as Sanju and Lochana combined well together. Sanju took aim .
Qualifier Collins topples idol Venus to reach Miami semi-finals
Danielle Collins produced the performance of a lifetime and pulled off an almighty shock at the WTA Miami Open today, sending Venus Williams crashing out 6-2, 6-3 to reach the semi-finals. It was an amazing effort from a 24 year-old qualifier in just her second season as a professional and her debut appearance at Key Biscayne. This was the first time in two attempts Collins has beaten a top 10 player, and even the crestfallen world number eight Williams would find it impossible to admit Collins didn't deserve to seal a meeting with French Open champion Jelena Ostapenko today for a place in Saturday's final. "I don't think it was my best night of tennis, but there wasn't a shot she couldn't make," Williams said. "She played very well and aggressively, and she went for every shot and it landed." Collins was simply delighted with the win over a player she idolized. "The first time I saw Venus in the locker room I nearly cried," Collins said. "She has been my favourite player so I am ...
'Forgive them': Smith, Warner head home in disgrace
Disgraced Australia skipper Steve Smith and vice-captain David Warner were heading home today to confront mounting anger over the cheating scandal that has left both men banned for a year, their careers in tatters and cricket rocked to its foundations. But as the two players also count the financial cost of their suspensions, there were calls from coach Darren Lehmann for them to be "given a second chance", adding that he fears for their long-term mental health in the current rabid climate. Cricket Australia (CA) said Smith, 28, and 31-year-old Warner had been suspended from "all international and domestic cricket" while opening batsman Cameron Bancroft has been banned for nine months over the ball-tampering incident during the third Test in South Africa. CA said in a statement that Bancroft, 25, who has played just eight Tests, had attempted to "artificially alter the condition of the ball using sandpaper". Smith -- the world's number one Test batsman -- was charged with knowledge of
Cricket crisis stems from 'entitlement culture'
The man who led a 2011 review into the Australian cricket team believes the ball-tampering scandal stems from a sense of entitlement among players, highlighted by a bitter pay dispute last year. Sparked by a poor Ashes series, the review, headed by Don Argus alongside former ICC chief Malcolm Speed and greats Allan Border, Steve Waugh and Mark Taylor, led to an overhaul of how the Australian team was led and coached. But Argus said it appeared standards had slipped, with players becoming driven more by money and less by the contribution they make to society. "When you think about the pedestal we put our cricketers on, to them wealth seems to be a right, not a reward," he told The Australian newspaper. "In all that noise about the pay dispute, they were saying this is our right, rather than a reward for creating something of value and being a responsible citizen. "When you have an industrial dispute like that, it takes a team of people and a fair bit of time to get over it. I see that .
Cricket Australia dropped by top sponsor Magellan after cheat storm
One of Cricket Australia's biggest sponsors, fund manager Magellan, today tore up its contract with the governing body over the ball-tampering scandal that has rocked the game. Almost simultaneously, sporting goods company ASICS announced it was ending its relationship with David Warner and Cameron Bancroft, two of the players at the heart of the cheating incident. Magellan inked a three-year partnership in August 2017 as naming rights sponsor for Australia's domestic Tests in a deal estimated at the time to be worth Aus$$20 million. It began with the recent Ashes series against England. This, it said, was based on "shared values and reputations of integrity, leadership, dedication and an unwavering customer-first culture". "A conspiracy by the leadership of the Australian men's Test cricket team which broke the rules with a clear intention to gain an unfair advantage during the third Test in South Africa goes to the heart of integrity," said Magellan chief Hamish Douglass in a ...
NZ captain Williamson defends Warner as 'not a bad guy'
New Zealand captain Kane Williamson defended David Warner Thursday, describing the Australian at the heart of the ball-tampering scandal as "not a bad guy". With New Zealand's build-up to the second Test against England, starting in Christchurch on Friday, overshadowed by international reaction to the cheating affair in South Africa, Williamson said he has been in touch with Warner. "It's a shame. The act is not condoned in any team," Williamson said after Warner was named as the instigator of the ball tampering. "It will blow over in time, but it's grown and grown and, like I say, he's not a bad guy. He's made a mistake and certainly admitted that and they are disappointed with that action." In the fallout from the ball-tampering, Cricket Australia have banned Warner and captain Steve Smith from all professional cricket for 12 months, and Cameron Bancroft for nine months. Smith has been suspended from the captaincy for at least two years, while Warner has been told he will never lead
South Africa aim to finish off scandal-hit Aussies
South Africa will aim to take advantage of a scandal-hit Australian team in the fourth and final Test starting at the Wanderers Stadium tomorrow. But coach Ottis Gibson has warned that Australia will provide strong opposition, even without the disgraced trio of Steve Smith, David Warner and Cameron Bancroft. "We hope they're very shattered," Gibson said of the turmoil around the opposition camp. "But they're still a good team with very good players. I'm still a huge fan of their fast bowling attack." The Australian bowling unit remains intact but there will be three enforced changes in the batting line-up as the tourists seek to avoid the first series loss by Australia in South Africa since Ali Bacher led the team then known as the Springboks to a 4-0 clean sweep in 1969/70. South Africa lead the current series 2-1 and captain Faf du Plessis said after his team won the third Test in Cape Town by 322 runs that he was determined to maintain the pressure on his opponents. The loss of ...
England skipper Root hails New Zealand cricket culture
New Zealand's cricket ethos drew praise today from England captain Joe Root as he weighed up the difference between playing the Blacks Caps and Australia over the past four months. On the eve of their second Test against New Zealand in Christchurch, the last match of an arduous tour, Root cited a different atmosphere between the two sides. While the Ashes series in Australia was fraught with acrimony, the relationship between England and New Zealand was cordial throughout the first Test despite New Zealand's domination. "In terms of atmosphere on the field there might not be as much said verbally when you play against New Zealand." he said. "But you still get a sense that they're playing good hard cricket. They go about things very much in their own way but you know you're up against a side that are desperate to win. "I'm not saying Australia don't bring that to the table when you play against them, but it is a different atmosphere in my experience." New Zealand's first Test victory ..
Not going to resign but need to change how we play: Lehmann
Australia coach Darren Lehmann today admitted that Steve Smith and David Warner had made "grave mistake" but urged everyone to be a bit more humane in their approach as they are not "bad people". "The players involved have been handed down very serious sanctions and they know they must face the consequences. They've made a grave mistake, but they are not bad people. As a coach you feel for them as people, they are hurting and I feel for them and their families. I hope that in all this, the media and the fans don't forget that," Lehmann told the mediapersons. Lehmann said that everyone should remember that each one of us have made mistakes in our life. "There's a human side in this. They have made a mistake, as everyone, including myself, has made mistakes in the past. These are young men, and I hope people will give them a second chance. Their health and well being is extremely important to us. The team has been perceived quite negatively in recent times and there is a need for us to
Lehmann apologises, calls for change of Aussie's playing style
After being cleared of any wrongdoing by a Cricket Australia investigation into the ball tampering scandal, head coach Darren Lehmann on Wednesday apologised to the fans and asserted that the team would need to improve their behaviour on and off the pitch in order to win back the respect.
Ian Chappell doesn't see Smith captaining Australia again
Former Australia captain Ian Chappell doesn't see Steve Smith leading the national team again and said the country's cricket board was right to ban him and David Warner for 12 months. Cricket Australia today announced that Smith will not be considered for captaincy again for at least 12 months after he serves his ban. Warner, on the other hand, will never be considered for a leadership role, said the board. "I don't see either of them (Smith or Warner) ever captaining Australia again. One of the most important things about being captain is that you have to earn the respect of your teammates," Chappell told Cricinfo. "With the way this stupidity in Cape Town played out, I don't think any of them could regain much respect with their teammates. So I think you can forget about either of them captaining Australia," he said. Chappell felt CA had to ban them for at least one year. "They had to go for 12 months with Smith and Warner. I think if they would have only given six months to them ...
Atletico's Koke thinks winning La Liga very difficult, but has hope
Atletico Madrid midfielder Jorge "Koke" Resurreccion acknowledged on Wednesday that the fight to claim the La Liga title was difficult to the point of being impossible, but his football club still had hope.
Sachin backs ban on disgraced Aussie trio
Indian batting icon Sachin Tendulkar on Wednesday backed the Cricket Australia's ban on former skipper Steve Smith, deputy David Warner and opener Cameron Bancroft in a ball tampering scandal.
CWG-2018: Indian contingent arrives in Gold Coast
About 200 members of the Indian contingent and officials participating in the 2018 Commonwealth Games beginning next week arrived here on Wednesday.
Women's League: Prameshwori strike helps ESU beat Rising Student's Club
Defending champions Eastern Sporting Union clinched their second consecutive win in the Indian Womens League when they edged out last years finalists Rising Students Club 1-0 at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium here on Wednesday.
Right decision has been taken: Tendulkar on Smith, Warner ban
Sachin Tendulkar feels that Cricket Australia has taken the "right decision" in banning the national team captain Steve Smith and his deputy David Warner for one year after being found guilty of ball tampering against South Africa during the just-concluded third Test in Cape Town. Smith and Warner have also been barred from playing the cash-rich IPL while young opener Cameron Bancroft has been suspended for nine months. Earlier, ICC had banned Smith for one Test match and fined his full match fee. "Cricket has been known as a gentleman's game. It's a game that I believe should be played in the purest form. Whatever has happened is unfortunate but the right decision has been taken to uphold the integrity of the game. Winning is important but the way you win is more important," Tendulkar wrote on his twitter page. While Tendulkar feels that the ban is the right decision, his longtime on-field competitor Shane Warne felt that the quantum of punishment didn't match the crime. "Let's take .
Barcelona coach Valverde downplays Messi injury concerns
Barcelona coach Ernesto Valverde on Wednesday downplayed concerns about the physical condition of superstar Lionel Messi, despite the Argentina and Barcelona forward sitting out his national football team's last two friendlies due to muscle problems.
Croatia edges Mexico 1-0 on second-half penalty
Midfielder Ivan Rakitic gave Croatia a 1-0 victory over Mexico in a pre-World Cup friendly by converting a penalty try at the hour mark.
Indira Gandhi Academy SE register win in IWL football
Indira Gandhi Academy SE (IGASE) notched up a 2-1 win over India Rush Soccer Club in a Hero Indian Womens League football match at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium here on Wednesday.