Page 2081 - Sports
Arsenal set up Man City League Cup final
Arsenal started the post-Alexis Sanchez era in style today, coming from behind to beat Chelsea 2-1 on aggregate and set up a mouthwatering League Cup final against Premier League leaders Manchester City. Pep Guardiola's City reached the Wembley showpiece the previous evening by beating Championship side Bristol City 3-2 in the second leg of their tie and 5-3 over the two legs, staying on course for an unprecedented quadruple. After a goalless first leg, the visitors took an early lead at the Emirates through Eden Hazard but Arsenal were level soon afterwards via a bizarre Antonio Rudiger own goal and scored the winner in the second half through Granit Xhaka. Arsene Wenger has an outstanding record in the FA Cup with Arsenal but in more than 21 years in the job he has never won the League Cup, which he has often used to blood young players. Guardiola on the other hand will be desperate to claim the first silverware of his time in charge at City, who are chasing glory on ..
Glenn Maxwell back as cover for Finch
All-rounder Glenn Maxwell has been recalled to the Australian squad as cover for injured Aaron Finch, who was ruled out of the fourth ODI against England.Maxwell had last played for the one-day side on the India tour last September.The 29-year-old was surprisingly left out when the squad was announced earlier this month, followed by comments from skipper Steve Smith that the former needs to be more consistent in his performance.Maxwell was also dropped for the Magellan Ashes, but was picked in the T20 side for next month's tri-series against England and New Zealand.Finch, who suffered a hamstring injury, will be assessed ahead of the fifth ODI in Perth on Sunday.
Unbeaten, untested India take on Bangladesh in quarters
An unbeaten India will start overwhelming favourites but will have to guard against complacency against a tricky Bangladesh in the quarterfinals of the ICC U-19 World Cup here tomorrow. Three-time champions India were hardly tested in the league stage where they thumped Australia, Papua New Guinea and Zimbabwe to top Group B. They meet Bangladesh who finished second in Group C after the loss against England in their previous game. Both teams would be fresh going into the knockout fixture. Bangladesh faced England last Thursday while India completed a 10-wicket rout of Zimbabwe on Friday. When they take the field, India would also have in mind the loss they endured against Bangladesh that knocked them out of the Asia Cup in Kuala Lumpur last November. However, key players like captain Prithvi Shaw did not take part in that tournament. While Bangladesh played against England at the Queenstown Events Centre, India were based in Mount Maunganui through the league stage. It is
Wobbly Wozniacki beats Mertens to reach Open final
Caroline Wozniacki is one match away from ending her Grand Slam title drought after overcoming a late wobble to beat unseeded Elise Mertens and reach the Australian Open final Thursday. The Danish world number two won 6-3, 7-6 (7/2) in 1hr 37min after almost allowing the world number 37 a way back when serving for the match at 5-4, and seemingly in complete control. Two double faults enabled Mertens, in her first semi- final at this level on her Australian Open debut, to level at 5-5. Serving to take it to a tiebreak at 5-6 Wozniacki then needed to save three sets points before sealing the match in the tiebreak. "It means so much to me." she said after reaching her maiden Australian Open final and her first Grand Slam decider since 2014, where she will play either top seed Simona Halep or the 2016 Melbourne Park champion Angelique Kerber on Saturday. "I got really tight at 5-4. I thought 'calm down it's all good'. It wasn't good anymore. Served a couple of double ...
Australia ODI woes continue with Finch to miss Adelaide
Australia's in-form opener Aaron Finch is set to miss the fourth one-day international against England on Friday, in a setback for the hosts as they seek their first win of the series. Finch has been ruled out of the Adelaide ODI with a hamstring strain and will be tested for fitness ahead of the final match in Perth, Cricket Australia said. The right-hander scored centuries in the first two matches and top-scored again on Sunday, but all in losing causes as Australia have conceded an unbeatable 3-0 lead to England in the five-match contest. He smashed 107 in Melbourne for the first match of the series, followed by 106 at the Gabba before leading the Aussie batsmen with a knock of 62 in Sydney. Finch's injury means Travis Head is likely to return to the lineup Friday in his home state of South Australia after being dropped for the third match at the SCG.
Caroline Wozniacki reaches Australian Open final
Denmark's Caroline Wozniacki has advanced to her first Australian Open final over Belgian Elise Mertens here at the Melbourne Park on Thursday.The second seed thrashed Mertens, world number 37 with a 6-3 7-6 (7-2) victory to edge closer to win her first Grand Slam title.Wozniacki will next face top seed Simona Halep or 2016 winner Angelique Kerber in the summit clash.
Federer wishes 'friend' Rafa speedy recovery
Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal might be arch-rivals on court but off it they are good friends and the compassionate Swiss star has been worried about the injured world number one. The gutted Spaniard was forced to retire with a hip problem early in the fifth set of his Australian Open quarter-final against sixth seed Marin Cilic on Tuesday. It deprived the opening Grand Slam of the year of a potential rematch of the vintage 2017 final where Federer beat Nadal in a heart-stopping five-setter. Federer said it hard to see Nadal's campaign end that way and the last thing he did before falling asleep on Tuesday evening ahead of his own quarter-final against Tomas Berdych was reach out to his friend. "It's hard to watch someone go out in five sets and not being able to finish," he said of seeing Nadal struggle. "I wrote Rafa late last night (Tuesday) before I went to bed. Last thing I did. I said I have to write Rafa and see how he's doing. "I was hoping he was going to be OK ..
Pro Wrestling League: Punjab Royals storm into finals
Defending champions Punjab Royals put up a dominant show to storm into the finals of the Pro Wrestling League here at the Siri Fort Indoor Stadium on Wednesday.The players took a commanding 4-0 lead against Veer Marathas before conceding the first point in the nine-bout tie.Pooja Dhanda then lived up to her new-found reputation of a giant killer to down World Championship silver medalist Marwa Amri to seal their place in the final.Pooja began on the wrong foot, losing two points to Marwa in the first period. She, however, bounced back smartly in the next period to turn the contest around. She did one better by pinning the Tunisian and scoring the victory that took the Punjab Royals into the title round.Earlier, in the first clash of the night, Punjab Royals' Ilyas Bekbulatov got his side off to a flying start, overshadowing Marathas' Amit Dhankar 10-4 in the men's 65-kg clash.Ilyas took Dhankar down twice and led 4-0 at the break.However, in the second round, he overpowered the Indian
Saina, Sindhu, Satwik-Chirag advance at Indonesia Masters
Saina Nehwal, P.V. Sindhu and the men's doubles pair of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty advanced to the second round, while Parupalli Kashyap exited in the first round of the $350,000 Indonesia Masters World Tour Super 500 here on Wednesday.
India will fight back, asserts Pujara
The Indian batsmen may have been dismissed for a paltry total in the first innings of the third cricket Test against South Africa here on Wednesday, but Cheteshwar Pujara is confident that the visitors are still in with a chance.
FC Pune City signs Marko Stankovic and Manuel Jess Ortiz
Indian Super League franchise FC Pune City has announced signing of Marko Stankovic and Manuel Jesus Ortiz Toribio "Lolo". The two players will replace Damir Grgic and Robertino Pugliara in the FC Pune City squad, who are released. Marko began his senior pro career with DSV Leoben back in 2003, spending four seasons and scoring 12 goals in 95 appearances. He went on to then represent SK Sturm Graz, U.S. Triestina Calcio and Austria Wien where he won the Austrian Bundesliga title and featured in the Europa League and UEFA Champions League in 2013-14 with the club, a media release said today. Lolo, a product of the Sevilla FC's youth system, represented club's B team (2002-08) and main team (2008-10). He then moved to Malaga on loan. His stint with CA Osasuna was the longest in La Liga for him spending four seasons playing 98 matches and scoring five goals. Lolo will reunite with his FC Pune City coach Ranko Popovic under whom he played at Real Zaragoza in 2014-15 ...
ISL: Pune ride late strikes against Jamshedpur
FC Pune City rode on late goals from Gurtej Singh and Emiliano Alfaro Toscano to defeat Jamshedpur FC 2-1 in an Indian Super League (ISL) encounter here on Wednesday.
Important to look for runs on this surface: Phehlukwayo
South African all-rounder Andile Phehlukwayo today said it was important to find runs on a bowling friendly pitch like the one used for the third Test against India here. He said South Africa did a good job to restrict India to 187 runs in the first innings, but the batsmen must rise to the occasion in the first innings. The Proteas were placed at 6/1 at stumps in response. "We did have a good day. Our efforts on the field were really good bar a few mistakes here and there. 180-odd is really good. The guys put the ball in the right areas and they were rewarded," said Phehlukwayo after taking 2-25. "Its a really good wicket (to bowl on). But youve got to be really positive and look to score. You have got to get into good positions otherwise there is a ball that has your number on that type of wicket." He said India's 187 was a decent total on the Wanderers' wicket. "You have to be looking ahead of the game. Their total is a decent enough total but its not really par. We ...
Saina, Sindhu enter second round in Indonesia
Saina Nehwal and P V Sindhu made a positive start to the new season, reaching the second round of the USD 350,000 Indonesia Masters with contrasting wins in women's singles here today. London Olympics bronze medallist Saina, who is coming back from an ankle injury, had to dig deep into her reservoir to eke out a 22-24 21-15 21-14 win over China's world no.7 Chen Yufei in a match that lasted an hour and nine minutes. Olympic silver medallist Sindhu, on the other hand, didn't sweat much as she dumped local hope Hanna Raramdini 21 -13 21-10. Saina will face China's Chen Xiaoxin, while Sindhu takes on Malaysia's Goh Jin Wei in the next round tomorrow. Saina fought back from 4-9 down to claw back at 16-16 before leading 20-17. But Chen erased the deficit to grab the opening game. The Indian led 7-4 before holding a slender 11-10 at the break. She stepped up and soon bounced back to win the second game. In the decider, Saina and Chen fought hard before the Indian broke off at .
England's Shrubsole first woman to appear on Wisden cover
England's Anya Shrubsole will be the first woman to appear on the front cover of the fabled Wisden Cricketers' Almanack after her heroics at last year's World Cup. Shrubsole hit the winning runs in a tense semi-final victory over South Africa before her six for 46, which included five wickets in 19 balls, brought England back from the brink as they edged India in the final at a packed Lord's. A photo of the 26-year-old will grace the famous yellow jacket of the 155th edition of the Almanack, which has been published every year since 1864. "It's an amazing honour and privilege to be on the cover of Wisden," said Shrubsole. "To be on the front of such an iconic and historic book means a huge amount. "Most of all, it's a clear representation of the strength of the women's game, and the impact of the World Cup victory and the work of the entire team." This year's Almanack, a comprehensive chronicling of the game over the past 12 months, will be published on April 12. "Anya ...
One of the toughest pitches I have batted on: Pujara
Indian batsman Cheteshwar Pujara has described the Wanderers wicket as one of the toughest he has played on and asserted that his side has enough runs on the board as the pitch would only get tougher to bat on. Pujara scored a grinding half-century off 179 balls as India were bowled out for 187 runs in their first innings. South Africa finished at 6/1 at stumps. "I think this is one of the toughest pitch I have played on. It was difficult to score runs especially in the first session. It was difficult to rotate the strike. There was a lot of bounce and seam movement, and there is enough pace now," said Pujara in the media interaction after close of play. "So we had to work hard to score runs. On this wicket, you wont be able to bat without getting beaten. I wont say my knock was a struggle. You do get beaten and at the end of the day if you can score a fifty on this pitch, it is a good knock." Pujara said 187 was a decent first innings total on the seaming ...
Neuer 'on schedule' for World Cup - Loew
Germany's captain and goalkeeper Manuel Neuer is "on schedule" to be fit for the World Cup in June, according to Germany's head coach Joachim Loew. Last September, Neuer, 31, fractured his left foot for the third time in 2017, but is now off crutches and working his way back to fitness. His club Bayern Munich has given no date as to when Neuer will return to action, but Loew says everything is going to plan. "He's on schedule," said Loew today. "I always have contact with Manuel Neuer and also (Germany's goalkeeper coach) Andi Koepke. "We have always been informed by him, we have confidence in him, he is so strong and his foot is causing us no problems at the moment." Germany play key friendlies at home against Spain and Brazil in March to prepare for the World Cup in Russia. Neuer, who has made 74 appearances for Germany, says his aim is to stay pain free and get back to playing as soon as possible. "I have not had any pain since the injury, you try to do as much as ...
Bankrupt Becker pleads for help in hunt for missing trophies
Bankrupt former tennis star Boris Becker on Wednesday appealed for help in tracking down five missing Grand Slam trophies which he needs to sell to help pay off his debts. The German shook up the tennis world at Wimbledon in 1985 when, as an unseeded player, he became the then youngest-ever male Grand Slam champion at the age of 17, defending the trophy the following year. Becker, 50, went on to win six Grand Slam trophies in a glittering career and reached world number one, amassing more than USD 25 million in prize money. But the German, who coached former world number one Novak Djokovic to multiple Grand Slam titles, was declared bankrupt by a court in London last year. His London-based bankruptcy trustees said in a statement issued on Wednesday that Becker had helped collect some of the trophies and other memorabilia that he amassed during his career. But the trustees added: "A number of the trophies of Mr Becker's career are unaccounted for as Mr Becker is unable to
Buffon back after two-month injury layoff
Gianluigi Buffon returned to training with Juventus today after nearly two months out injured. The veteran goalkeeper -- who turns 40 next Sunday - last played in the 1-0 win over Napoli on December 1 and has struggled with a calf injury since. Buffon will now be in contention to face Chievo in league action on Saturday, but the injury could have scuppered his chances of equalling Paolo Maldini's record of Serie A appearances by the end of the season. With 629 appearances so far and 17 games remaining in the Serie A campaign, even if he played in all remaining games Buffon would just miss the former AC Milan defender's record of 647 appearances. Buffon, who joined Juventus from Parma in 2001, has said he will retire after this season. He has started just 10 of the Turin giant's 21 Serie A games this season. He also missed two Italian Cup wins as well as the 2-0 victory against Olympiakos in the final game of the Champions League's group stage. Italy's World Cup winning ...
Ganguly says Wanderers pitch 'unfair' on batsmen
Sourav Ganguly today said the pitch for the third Test between India and South Africa was unfair on the batsmen and called for ICC's intervention into the matter. "To play test cricket on this surface is unfair ...saw it in NZ in 2003 ...batsman have minimum chance ...ICC should look into it," tweeted Ganguly. India were bowled for 187 on day one with Cheteshwar Pujar and captain Virat Kohli scoring fighting half-centuries. South Africa were for six for one at stumps. The pacers enjoyed bowling on the seaming surface with Kagiso Rabada taking three wickets, Morne Morkel, Vernon Philander and Andile Phehlukwayo picking two each.