Page 2213 - Sports
Best chance to win a Test series in South Africa: Rahane
India vice-captain Ajinkya Rahane believes the current team has the best chance of winning a Test series in South Africa and said the visitors would look to give their best when the tour begins next month. "We do have the best chance to win the series. But we feel that we are just looking to play good cricket, it is all about giving your best. We can't take any session lightly. We are ready for the challenge," Rahane told NDTV. "South Africa is a very good team. They have a very good attack, where they know their conditions really well. So we don't want to take them lightly, but at the same time, we want to give our best and express ourself. I think first match will be crucial," he added. India will play three Tests, six ODIs and three Twenty20 Internationals in South Africa. The first Test begins in Cape Town on January 5. Rahane said his side were confident of achieving the number one ranking in Test with India playing against England, New Zealand and Australia. "As a .
'Solo run' goal man Naorem wants to emulate Hazard's dribbling
Nongdamba Naorem, who scored a spectacular solo run goal in Indian Arrows 3-0 drubbing of Minerva Punjab in an I-League match today, said he wanted to emulate Belgium and Chelsea attacking midfielder Eden Hazard's dribbling skills. Naorem's 86th minute strike was easily the goal of the season so far as he cut in from the left channel and dodged past six Lajong players before slotting the ball past an onrushing goalie into the net. Naorem had come into the match as a substitute in the 75th minute. "I love to watch Eden Hazard dribbling and scoring goals. I love to dribble. So I dribbled and got past a couple of (Minerva) defenders and then suddenly I realised that I can score the goal. I cannot believe that I have scored that goal," Naorem said after the match at Ambedkar Stadium. "It is one of the best goals I have scored in my career," said the Manipuri who will turn 18 on January 2. Asked if he tried to dribble most of the time during training also, he said, "I almost .
Will do our best to win the series in South Africa: Rahane
India vice captain Ajinkya Rahane on Tuesday said the team has a good chance to win the Test series in South Africa and the players will do their best to win it.
Rohit is ahead of Kohli in limited overs: Sandeep Patil
Former BCCI chief selector Sandeep Patil stirred a fresh controversy saying opener Rohit Sharma is a better batsman than skipper Virat Kohli in limited overs cricket.
Aizawl confident of making a strong comeback (Lead, Preview)
Aizawl FC will play their third home match of the I-League football season against high flying Minerva Punjab FC at the Rajiv Gandhi Stadium here on Wednesday.
Kane sets Premier League goal record
Harry Kane set a new record for the most Premier League goals in a year and will finish as Europe's leading scorer for 2017 after the Tottenham Hotspur forward bagged a brace against Southampton today. Kane's 22nd-minute header at Wembley was his 37th goal of the year, moving him past Alan Shearer's previous Premier League record, which was set when he played for Blackburn Rovers in 1995. But Kane wasn't happy to settle for that milestone and scored again with a close-range finish in the 39th minute. His second goal took him to 55 for club and country in 2017 -- lifting him above Barcelona's Lionel Messi to become Europe's top-scorer over the last 12 months in the five major countries (England, Spain, Italy, Germany and France). Messi, who has 54 goals this year, can't catch Kane as Barcelona don't play again until 2018. Kane admitted he was keen to break Shearer's record after he moved level with the former England star with a hat-trick in Tottenham's win at Burnley on ..
Aizawl look to make a strong comeback
Defending champions Aizawl FC would look to bounce back from their previous game defeat when they take on high flying Minerva Punjab FC in their third home match of the I-League here tomorrow. Aizawl FC went down 0-1 to their Northeastern rivals Shillong Lajong FC in their last tie at their fortress. They would look to make amends of that disappointing result against the Punjab side at the Rajiv Gandhi Stadium. Captain Alfred Jaryan said Aizawl FC were a different side as compared to last season. "As compared to last season, we are a completely peculiar side. The coach is different and our styles and tactics are also different. But there are still a lot of matches to be played and I hope we can finish the season in a good fashion," he said. Minerva Punjab are coming to the tie after an unbeaten home run which has earned them 13 points from five matches. Minerva coach Khogen Singh is well aware of their position in the league and he stressed on keeping the focus on the ...
Lajong coach complains about tight scheduling in I-League
Shillong Lajong coach Bobby Lyngdoh Nongbet today complained about tight scheduling of I- League matches after his team's 0-3 loss against Indian Arrows here. Nongbet, whose side suffered a 0-3 drubbing at the hands of the Arrows, also felt that the Ambedkar Stadium playing surface was hard which made it difficult for his players to control the ball. The Arrows, however, produced a fine display of passing football on that pitch. "We played our previous match on December 23 (at home in Shillong) and we are playing here three days later. There is only two days gap and out of these two days, one is travelling day. It (the schedule) has taken a toll on our team. I hope the AIFF will look into this," Nongbet said at the post-match press conference. "The 2pm start is also not ideal. It could have been 4pm or 5:30pm," he added. Talking about the match, he said, "The Arrows boys really played very well. We were totally outplayed in the first half. We press hard and tried to ...
CKM Dhananjai replaces Tulli as video analyst
Ahead of India's South Africa tour, Team India's support staff has undergone a change to bring video analyst CKM Dhananjai back to the team to replace Ashish Tulli.Dhananjai was a part of the team when it won the 2007 World T20I, the ODI World Cup in 2011 and the Champions Trophy in 2013.He had also worked with the Indian team when it reached the No. 1 Test ranking in 2009.Currently, he is the analyst for defending IPL champions Mumbai Indians. Hence, for lending back-room support to the Indian team again, he will have to vacate the post as part of BCCI regulations to avoid conflict of interest, reports ESPNcricinfo.Tulli, formerly associated with the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association, was appointed the analyst when Anurag Thakur was the BCCI president.S Ramakrishnan, the founder of SportsMechanics, was the first video analyst for the Indian side.
Aizawl confident of making a strong comeback (Preview)
Aizawl FC will play their third home match of the season against high flying Minerva Punjab FC at the Rajiv Gandhi Stadium here on Tuesday.
Teammates and rivals marvel at 'freakish' Smith
David Warner says in-form Steve Smith is a freakish talent while England's leading bowler James Anderson says the Australia skipper is in the form of his life. Smith was well on the way to posting his fourth consecutive century in the showpiece Boxing Day Test at the Melbourne Cricket Ground after an unbeaten 65 in Australia's 244 for three after day one Tuesday. The quirky Smith hasn't been dismissed in a Melbourne Test match since Boxing Day 2014 and was on track to repeat the feat on a bat-friendly MCG pitch. In the last three showpiece Boxing Day Tests, Smith has scored 192 against India, 134 not out against the West Indies and an unbeaten 165 last year against Pakistan. So far in this series Smith has amassed 491 runs against England at a stunning average of 163.66 from five innings. "I think we all wish we were half the batter Steve Smith is at the moment because he's seeing them like watermelons, but he makes the game look so easy," said team vice-captain Warner, .
Du Plessis ruled out, De Villiers captains South Africa
South Africa confirmed today that captain Faf du Plessis would miss the one-off day-night Test against Zimbabwe, starting at St George's Park later in the day. AB de Villiers will take over the captaincy. Du Plessis suffered a lower back injury in a one-day international against Bangladesh in October and opted to have surgery on a troublesome shoulder during his recovery period. Team manager and doctor Mohammed Moosajee said Du Plessis had been on track to play against Zimbabwe but suffered a respiratory tract infection which set him back. "We are hopeful he will recover in time to lead the team for the first Test match against India, starting in Cape Town on January 5," said Moosajee. De Villiers is making a comeback to Test cricket. He was the captain in his most recent two Tests, against England in January 2016, but then suffered a long-term elbow injury before deciding to take a break from long-form cricket.
Sindhu to 'pick and choose' tournaments next year
Indian shuttler PV Sindhu on Tuesday said the next year's international calendar is tough due to cramped scheduling and hence, she would pick and choose tournaments.Talking about the cramped international calendar, which has been criticised by top players including Saina Nehwal and Carolina Marin, Sindhu said that the tournaments needed to be planned accordingly."I am going to pick and choose tournaments as it is a very tough schedule. We have some tournaments adding up and we also have some of the super premiers plus World Championships, Asian Games and Commonwealth Games as well. So we have to accordingly plan it with the coach and play tournaments because we have to be fit enough mentally and physically," the Olympian said.When asked about the recent Dubai Super Series Finals, which she lost in a close summit clash match, failing to claim her maiden title, Sindhu said she was upset about it earlier, 'but she has learnt from her mistakes.'"I felt bad about it as I recalled the world
East Bengal aim for a fourth win on trot
On a high after a hattrick of wins, East Bengal will look to continue their ascent and eye the number one spot when they host debutants Gokulam Kerala FC in a sixth round I-League football fixture here tomorrow. Having started off with two back-to-back draws including one in the season's first derby, the Khalid Jamil-coached side drew a lot of flak but they're finally back on winning track, three points shy of leaders Minerva (13). The Kerala outfit, on the other hand, will be boosted by their maiden win of the season that came in the last round against Indian Arrows in a match they scored two goals. Coach Bino George's side have managed to score three goals in four matches and two of them have come in the last match. The debutants would look to challenge the local heavyweights who have scored the maximum goals 12 so far from five matches. Katsumi Yusa and Laldanmawia Ralte have been their key to scoring goals with three each, while Willis Plaza have returned to find ...
Grandmasters and juniors chess from December 30
The 3rd IIFL Wealth Mumbai International Chess Tournament, comprising an International Grandmasters tournament as well as a Juniors (Under 13) event, is to be held at the Mount Litera School International here from December 30, 2017 to January 7, 2018. The senior event will carry a prize fund of Rs 12 lakh and the U13 championship Rs 8 lakh and on the final day multiple-time World Champion Vishwanathan Anand will play simulcast against junior participants, said a media release here today. Players from more than 25 countries are to take part in the championships, the release added.
Arrows drub Lajong 3-0 in impressive show of passing football
Indian Arrows produced an impressive display of possession football with Nongdamba Naorem scoring a peach of a goal in a solo run to provide the icing on the cake in their 3-0 drubbing of Shillong Lajong in an entertaining I-League match here today. The All India Football Federation's developmental side, made up mostly of the country's U-17 World Cup squad, completely toyed with their opponents with an overwhelming possession and show of sleek passing en route notching up their second win of the league. They scored through Jitendra Singh (19th minute), Nongdamba Naorem (86th) and Rahul Kannoly (90+1) to walk away with full three points at the Amebedkar Stadium to bounce back from their three successive losses. The Arrows, the youngest side in the I-League, played the final half an hour with one-man advantage after Lajong's F Lalrohlua was sent off for his second bookable offence in the 60th minute. Naorem's 86th minute strike was easily the goal of the season so far as .
Warner, Smith take Australia to 244/3 on Day 1 of 4th Ashes Test
David Warner cracked 103 as Australia reached 244 for three on the opening day of the fourth and penultimate Ashes Test against England at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) here on Tuesday.
Goa down Bengal to emerge Plate champs
Santoshi Rane and Sunanda Yetrekar rattled Bengal to help Goa coast to a 37-run win and emerge champions in Plate Group of the Senior Women's One Day League at Eden Gardens today. Defending a paltry 148, Goa bundled out Bengal for 110 in 43.5 overs with Rane (3/24) and Yetrekar (3/13) wreaking havoc, while skipper Shikha Pandey produced a superb bowling display returning with figures of 8-5-5-0. The Goan skipper earlier led by example with her batting as she top scored with 66 from 89 balls (8x4, 1x6) to take them to 147/9 after Bengal opted to bowl. Nisha Maji (3/31) and Gayatri Mal (2/20) gave regular breakthroughs but the Goan captain and Bharati Gaonkar (32 not out from 78 balls; 1x4) ensured that they bat full 50 overs. Recovering from a wrist injury, Bengal captain and star pacer Jhulan Goswami (1/13) could only bowl seven overs and batted lower down the order and it did not help the team's cause. Goa medium pacer Rane gave the first breakthrough dismissing Aparna .
Indian Arrows beat Shillong Lajong in I-League tie
Indian Arrows notched their second win of the Hero I-League campaign as the young colts defeated a ten-man Shillong Lajong 3-0 at the Ambedkar Stadium here on Tuesday.
Shoaib Malik backed to fill in for suspended Hafeez in New Zealand
Pakistan all-rounder Sarfraz Ahmed has backed veteran all-rounder Shoaib Malik to contribute more with the ball and serve as a cover for suspended Mohammad Hafeez in the upcoming limited-overs series, beginning January 6 at the Basin Reserve in Wellington.In November, Hafeez was suspended from bowling in international cricket for the third time in three years after the International Cricket Council (ICC) found his bowling action to be illegal.Though Sarfraz admitted that Hafeez's loss before such a tricky series against New Zealand was a major blow for Pakistan, he was hoping for a fine job from Malik."This was a setback for the team but I am confident that the plan PCB has devised for rectification of Hafeez's action will help him clear (the next test). In the meantime, Shoaib Malik will pitch in with the ball during the middle orders. We're very hopeful that he'll do a fine job in Hafeez's absence," the Dawn quoted Sarfraz, as saying.The skipper also reflected on the inclusion of ...