Page 217 - Sports
Kim Garth to lead Ireland in place of injured Laura Delany
Cricket Ireland on Monday announced that all-rounder Kim Garth will captain the women's team for the rest of the series against West Indies in place of the injured Laura Delany.Delany was struck on her ankle in the 18th over of the opening T20I on Sunday. She had to be helped off the field and was taken to hospital for scans. She has been ruled out for four weeks."We are all thinking of Dellers (Laura Delany) at this time. It was an unfortunate but painful injury she sustained and we look forward to seeing her back on the field as soon as she recovers. Despite the circumstances, it's always a privilege to take on the captaincy of a national side and I look forward to the challenge over the next two matches," Garth said in an official statement released by Cricket Ireland."The West Indies showed why they are rated one of the world's best sides, but we know that our squad contains a lot of promise, so it's a matter of getting back out there and showing the world what we know we can do,"
Rahi books Olympic quota, Saurabh sets new world record at ISSF WC
Rahi Sarnobat Monday booked an Olympic quota place for India with a gold in women's 25m pistol event but it was teenager Saurabh Chaudhary who stole the limelight by setting a new world record en route to a yellow metal at the season's third ISSF World Cup in Munich. Saurabh bagged his second World Cup gold of the year in men's 10m Air Pistol event, shattering both the senior and junior world records in the process. India now top the Munich World Cup medals tally with three gold. China are second with one gold, one silver and three bronze medals. Asian Games champion Rahi clinched her career's second World Cup gold, which helped India win its sixth quota place in shooting for 2020 Tokyo Olympics. In the women's final, another Indian in the fray, Manu Bhaker had a better start than Rahi, having five out of five hits in the first of 10 series of five shots each. Rahi started with three hits. After the sixth series, Manu, Rahi and Olena Kostevych of Ukraine were jointly tied at the top ..
FIDE decides to restore ratings of banned chess players, setback for AICF
In a sudden and surprising development for the chess players and a setback for the All India Chess Federation (AICF), the global chess body FIDE on Monday announced the restoration of Elo ratings of dozens of Indian players in their records.
Want to build a tactically strong team, says Mohun Bagan's new coach
Mohun Bagan's new Spanish coach Kibu Vicuna Monday said his main focus is on building a "tactically" strong team which can easily adopt to attacking style of play. The former champions had a forgettable I-League season this year, losing to arch-rivals East Bengal twice and ended their campaign with a disappointing fifth place finish. With no clarity on the next I-League, there are speculations that Bagan would join the Indian Super League along with East Bengal and both the Kolkata giants are presently busy in team building. "I would like to build a strong team tactically and also adopt an offensive style of play. We should be to control the tempo of the games," the 47-year-old said in the club's website. "More than the shapes we have to build our own style and model of play. I would like to have Mohun Bagan play good offensive football. This is our objective," the UEFA Pro Licence holder said. Vicuna, who coached Poland First Division side 'Ekstraklasa' previously, is busy taking ...
FIDE to restore Elo ratings of banned Indian players
The world chess body (FIDE) on Monday decided to restore the Elo ratings of dozens of Indian players, whose were banned by the All-India Chess Federation. "Nearly a decade ago, FIDE, at the behest of the All India Chess Federation (AICF), removed the Elo ratings of dozens of players and expunged their names from the records. Today we are delighted to welcome back all those players with immediate effect," FIDE president Arkady Dvorkovich said in a statement posted on Twitter. Former world number three and FIDE vice-president Nigel Short tweeted: "A hugely positive statement by #FIDE President @advorkovich. #Chess must be for the players & lovers of the game - not for the administrators." Meanwhile, Gurpreet Pal Singh, one of the players banned by the AICF several years ago, told PTI that he was very happy and was thankful to the FIDE president and vice-president for the world chess body's move to restore their ratings. "I am very happy. This is great news. We are very thankful to ..
Rashid gets support from Shamim, Mukesh; top golfers refuse to comment
Rashid Khan has been left isolated with renowned Indian golfers steering clear of the controversy, a day after the two-time Asian Tour champion was detained by police for trying to enter the Delhi Golf Club (DGC) here. Rashid and nine other caddie-turned-golfers were detained and taken to Tuqhlaq Road police station for questioning after they tried to enter DGC to practice on Saturday. The 28-year-old from Delhi on Sunday alleged that the DGC is discriminating against golfers from humble background. He even threatened to quit the sport and give up his Olympic dream if the club doesn't allow him to use its facilities. While Rashid received the support of two-time European Tour champion Shubhankar Sharma and domestic regulars Shamim Khan and Mukesh Kumar, former Asian tour winners like Jyoti Randhawa, SSP Chawrasia and Gaganjeet Bhullar decided not to comment on the issue. "I don't want to comment anything. I don't have the whole picture, I dont know what is happening. I don't know what
IAF beats CDBA in Nachimuthu Gounder basketball tourney
Indian Air Force defeated Coimbatore District Basketball Association 71-58 in the inaugural match of All India Basketball Tournament for 54th Nachimuthu Gounder Trophy for men, which began here Monday. In the women's category for the 18th CRI Pumps Trophy, Southern Railway beat KSEB 48-42 in a closely fought match. For IAF Rajeev Kumar top scored with 17 points and Rohit Gulia chipped in with 13 points. Callistus Gerald and Vinith Kumar scored 24 and 17 points for the losers CBDA. Raja Priya Dharshini sank in 12 for Railways while team mate Dharshini scored 10. For KSEB, Anajana scored 15 points and Roja mol 10.
CWC'19 warm-up: England thrashes Afghanistan by nine wickets
England thrashed Afghanistan by nine wickets in their final warm-up match at the Oval on Monday ahead of the upcoming Cricket World Cup.Chasing a below-par score of 161, England got off to a quickfire start as their openers Jason Roy and Jonny Bairstow hammered Afghanistan for regular boundaries and these two batsmen enabled England to score 76 runs in opening seven overs.Mohammad Nabi provided the first breakthrough to Afghanistan as Bairstow (39) was stumped in the eighth over.Joe Root came out to bat at number three, and along with Roy, did not allow Afghanistan to come back in the match. Both these batsmen carried the momentum forward for England.The duo ensured that the team does not suffer from any more hiccups and they took England over the line by nine wickets with 195 balls to spare in the 18th over.Roy and Root remained unbeaten on 89 and 29, respectively.Earlier, a spirited bowling performance helped England bundle out Afghanistan for just 160 runs.Afghanistan got off to a .
Future looks bright for Mumbai cricket, says Prithvi Shaw
Young prodigy Prithvi Shaw, who led his side North Mumbai Panthers to their maiden T20 Mumbai championship win, Monday said the future of cricket looks bright in the metropolis. North Mumbai Panthers Sunday defeated Sobo Supersonics by 12 runs in the summit clash held at the Wankhede Stadium here. "The win has boosted our confidence and is a great beginning to all of our careers. Winning the T20 Mumbai tournament boosts confidence for local talent. "The future certainly looks bright for Mumbai cricket," Shaw was quoted as saying in a release issued by North Mumbai Panthers. The 19-year-old batsman had led India to U-19 World Cup title last year and also made his Test debut against the West Indies at Rajkot in 2018. In the final, North Mumbai Panthers put up 143/7 on the board, courtesy Shaw's unbeaten 61, and later bundled out Sobo Supersonics for 131 with pace duo of Prathamesh Dake and Atif Attarwala taking three wickets each. This was the second season of T20 Mumbai.
French Open: Nadal brushes aside Yannick Hanfmann in first round
Rafael Nadal had an ideal start to his French Open campaign as he defeated Yannick Hanfmann 6-2, 6-1, 6-3 in the first round match on Monday.Chasing his 12th Roland Garros title, the world number two outclassed Hanfmann in the first-round match that lasted for an hour and 57 minutes on Court Philippe-Chatrier.Nadal, playing on his familiar territory of clay, looked in impeccable form on the court, making attacking moves forcing Hanfmann to work hard for every point.The Spaniard fired 20 winners and 15 unforced errors keeping Hanfmann on 17 direct points and some 30 errors as his defence and general pace proved to be too much for the qualifier to handle.The second seed Nadal stole half the return points and he earned five break points to control the scoreboard all the time.Yannick was not able to break Nadal's defence. The Spaniard was able to land 17 out of his 19 serves and as a result, he gained the upper hand in set number two.Nothing much changed in the final set, as Nadal ...
Nadal cruises through at Roland Garros, Wozniacki out
Defending champion Rafael Nadal got his bid for a record-extending 12th French Open title off to the perfect start by brushing aside German qualifier Yannick Hanfmann in the first round at Roland Garros on Monday. The 17-time Grand Slam champion cruised to a 6-2, 6-1, 6-3 victory on the rebuilt Court Philippe Chatrier to set up a clash with another German qualifier -- world number 114 Yannick Maden -- in round two. Nadal had suffered three consecutive semi-final defeats earlier in the clay-court season, but appeared to find his best in an Italian Open title success sealed with victory over old rival Novak Djokovic, while his French Open win-loss record now reads 87-2. "It's always amazing to play here, the new Chatrier is very nice," the second seed said. "It's been an important place in my career. "I played a good tournament in Rome which was very important for my confidence. Now we'll see." The 32-year-old Nadal raced into a 3-0 lead in the opening set before a second break of serve
Teams' evolving tactics in World Cup
Just like in every other sport, tactics used in cricket have evolved many folds- thanks to the ever-growing competition in the game. Be it Australia's Adam Gilchrist using squash in his glove in an attempt to loosen his grip on his bat or Pakistan's Wasim Akram and Imran Khan using the technique of reverse-swing, both batsmen and bowlers have come out with new strategies to refine their game.The first Men's Cricket World Cup was played in 1975 and since then we have witnessed a lot of such evolutions. Clive Lloyd, who led West Indies to win the first-ever World Cup, did not just display an astounding captaincy but also guided his side by scoring a century in the final against Australia.It was not just the players who amended their way of playing cricket, the game itself witnessed a change in 1987 World Cup when the overs were reduced from 60 to 50.Sri Lanka clinched their maiden World Cup title in 1996 and it had contributions from the most prolific bowler in the history of ...
India football coach Stimac releases 6 players from camp
Indian football team's national coach Igor Stimac on Monday released six players from the list of 37 who had assembled for the preparatory camp, which kicked-off on May 21 here in the capital. Vishal Kaith, Germanpreet Singh, Nandha Kumar, Redeem Tlang, Bikramjit Singh, and Sumeet Passi are the ones who have been released ahead of the King's Cup, to be held in Buriram, Thailand from June 5-8. "I am very happy with the efforts put in by all the players till now. There is a serious competition to get into that final list of 23 who would be representing the country in the King's Cup. "We have released 6 players who are to go back. Each one of them has been given an individual working programme which is to be executed in the future by themselves in an attempt to improve on their fitness, and technical, and tactical abilities," Stimac, who was a part of Croatia's 1998 World Cup squad that finished third in France, added. The 51-year-old, who had guided Croatia to World Cup as a coach, said
Dravid invited in meeting to pick India U-19 team for UK tour
India U-19 coach Rahul Dravid has been named as a 'special invitee' for the junior selection committee meeting of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) in the Capital on June 11.
Australia's Khawaja suffers injury scare in warm-up game against SL
Australia were dealt an injury scare on Monday after top-order batsman Usman Khawaja limped off the field after getting hit on his left knee during their second and final World Cup warm-up match against Sri Lanka here. Khawaja suffered a blow on his left knee while fielding and had to be escorted off the ground by the team doctor. Monday's injury scare came after Khawaja was forced to retire hurt during Australia's first warm-up game against England on Wednesday, which they won by 12 runs. During the match against England, Khawaja sustained a blow on his jaw while batting but scans later revealed that there was no break. The left-handed batsman is now uncertain for Australia's World Cup opener against Afghanistan on June 1.
Pakistan can pull off upset like 1992: Waqar
Former Pakistan captain and bowling great Waqar Younis feels Sarfraz Ahmed and his boys can pull off an upset this World Cup, much like they did in 1992 by winning the coveted trophy.
Mohun Bagan must build own style of play: Vicuna
Newly appointed Mohun Bagan head coach Kibu Vicuna wants to build a tactically strong team that can play attacking football and have their own identity.
Goa to host National Games in Oct, urges IOA to waive penalty
Goa will host the 36th National Games in October this year and the state government has urged the Indian Olympics Association (IOA) to write off the Rs 10 crore penalty imposed on it for delaying the event, state sports minister Manohar Ajgaonkar said on Monday. He assured that there would be no further delays in organising the National Games and said 10 stadiums were being refurbished to conduct the sports event. "The entire infrastructure would be ready by July- August, so that the games can be held in October," he said, adding that the existing facilities were being upgraded to the standards required for the event. "We are trying to convince the IOA that imposing the fine may result in creating bitterness between the hosts (Goa) and the sports body (IOA)," the minister said, after chairing a meeting to discuss the progress on developing infrastructure for the National Games 2019. This was the first meeting held by Ajogankar, who is also Goa's deputy chief minister, ...
FIDE decides to restore rating of banned chess players, set back for AICF
In a sudden and surprising development for the chess players and a set back for the All India Chess Federation (AICF), the global chess body FIDE on Monday announced the restoration of Elo ratings of dozens of Indian players in their records.
More than one lakh women have bought World Cup tickets: ICC
More than one lakh tickets for the 2019 World Cup have been bought by women and over two lakh people will come to watch the action for the first time during the course of the mega event, claimed tournament director Steve Elworthy, here Monday. "This has been one of the biggest cricket ballots we have run and the results have been incredible. We have seen more than 110,000 women buying tickets, we have 100,000 under-16s coming to witness and experience the World Cup," said Elworthy. The organisers hope that the tournament will inspire the youth to take up the sport. "We have over 200,000 people coming to cricket for the first time. The picture that really resonates with me, when we talk about inspiring the next generation is Anya Shrubsole looking over the fence at Lord's as a youngster who was then a key member of England winning the World Cup in 2017. "That is what we want the match-day experience to be for our youngsters," he said. Elworthy, outgoing ICC chief executive Dave ...