Page 246 - Sports
Warner and Smith are ready to face fire in England: Langer
The English crowd may throw some taunts on Steve Smith and Warner during the World Cup but they are ready to "face the fire", says Australia coach Justin Langer. Warner and Smith return to high intensity action at the showpiece event after serving out their one-year bans, imposed for their role in last year's ball-tampering scandal in South Africa. Langer admitted that controlling the crowd is not their hands but urged the fans to treat Warner and Smith as human beings, prone to committing mistakes. "We can't control the crowd. What I do know? It may ramp up, it may heat up, but it won't be any hotter than it was twelve months ago. I've never seen anything like it so the boys are very well prepared. They've paid a heavy price and we're always expecting to come here and to face the fire and we're ready for that," said Langer after team's first training session after their arrival. But what has been their preparation in dealing with the angry crowd response? to this Langer said the ...
Ronaldo wins 'Serie A Player of the Year' award
Juventus star striker Cristiano Ronaldo was awarded the 'Serie A Player of the Year' award on Saturday (local time). This is a remarkable feat for the Portuguese international as he has won the award in his very first season in Italy.The timing of the award is seen as unusual as Serie A individual awards have been given out at the same time, after the conclusion of the season, but Ronaldo will be recognised before Juventus' match against Atalanta today, Goal.com reported.With this win, Ronaldo has now won the domestic player of the year award in England, Spain, and Italy. Ronaldo has been awarded five Ballons d'Or, which sees him tied with Lionel Messi for the most in history. Ronaldo has also won the league championships in these countries.The 34-year-old striker joined Juventus in 2018. He left Real Madrid as the club's all-time goalscorer, and after having won three consecutive Champions League titles.Ronaldo has been exceptional for Juventus as he has scored 21 goals for the team .
Marquez back on pole in France, Lorenzo improves to 8th
Even a crash during Q2 couldnt stop Marc Marquez from claiming his third pole position from five races while teammate Jorge Lorenzo took a season-best eighth.
City thrash Watford 6-0 to complete historic treble
Manchester City handed Watford a 6-0 hiding in the FA Cup final to complete an unprecedented domestic treble. David Silva, Gabriel Jesus, Kevin De Bruyne and Raheem Sterling all found the target on Saturday to help City to their third domestic tile of the season after winning the EFL Cup and the Premier League.
Wilder retains WBC heavyweight title with brutal first round KO
Undefeated Deontay Wilder brutally knocked out Dominic Breazeale in the first round of their grudge match Saturday night to retain his World Boxing Council heavyweight world title. Wilder, who has one of the most destructive right hands in heavyweight history, floored the challenger with a one-punch knockout with 43 seconds left in the opening round. Wilder swarmed Breazeale from the opening bell, hurting him with a straight right hand then finishing him off later in the round with the devastating right to the chin that was set up by a left jab. Breazeale lay on his back, then got up at the count of 10 as the referee waved it off. Wilder, 33, improved to 41-0-1 with 40 KOs in making the ninth defence of his title against heavy underdog Breazeale at the Barclays Center arena in Brooklyn, New York. Breazeale, who had lost just one previous fight to Anthony Joshua, dropped to 20-2 with 18 KOs. There was bad blood between the two heading into the fight with the buildup marked by a series
Bravo, Pollard named in ten-player reserve list for upcoming CWC19
Cricket West Indies on Saturday (local time) announced the list of reserve players for the upcoming World Cup. The list comprises of ten players and the likes of Dwayne Bravo and Keiron Pollard have been named in the list."The choice of players in the reserve list is to really cover our bases and ensure we have a good balance in the pool of players that can be selected if replacements are required," the Interim Chairman of Selectors, Robert Haynes said in an official statement."We think the skill set in this pool is strong with a good blend of experience and upcoming young players who can be ready to contribute when required," he added.West Indies will continue their preparations for the World Cup with a training camp in Southampton from May 19-23.The camp will include an additional warm-up fixture against Australia, which will be played on May 22 at Southampton."We are very grateful to Hampshire CCC for agreeing to host us at the Ageas Bowl and to Cricket Australia for agreeing to ...
Wanted to do superman like things in previous World Cups: Faf Du Plessis
South Africa skipper Faf du Plessis on Sunday said that the team wanted to do play like a superhero in the previous editions of the World Cup, adding that his team leaves no stone unturned in giving their best during such tournaments."In previous World Cups, we wanted to do Superman things. We thought we had to be more special, we had to do something more than we usually do, and we did not do what was good enough before," International Cricket Council (ICC) quoted Du Plessis as saying."We haven't always got that right in the past, to play our best cricket at the World Cup, because we put so much pressure on ourselves. We want to just focus on enjoying our cricket," he added.South Africa has built a reputation for themselves of "chokers" after losing big matches. The team has never gone past the semi-final stages of the World Cup.Du Plessis highlighted that the team needs to overcome its fear of failure to succeed in the World Cup."We started a year or two ago with a real focus on ...
Bayern Munich's manager praises departing duo Ribery and Robben
Bayern Munich won their seventh consecutive Bundesliga title on Saturday and their manager Niko Kovac heaped praise on the departing duo of Franck Ribery and Arjen Robben, saying that both these players helped in shaping up the team.The star pair of Ribery and Robben played their final match for the club on Saturday and both these footballers scored for Munich, ensuring team's 5-1 win in the finals over Eintracht Frankfurt."I made two notes today in the meeting. One was that we want to become champions, of course. But we wanted to go one better and give the two (Robben and Ribery) a nice farewell," Goal.com quoted Kovac as saying."That pleases me very much. Because they have shaped the Bundesliga for 10 years. They shaped this club. It was clear they would come in. It was hard to tell them that they did not play from the beginning, because we footballers have all been in this situation before. But I had to make a sporting decision," he added.Both Ribery and Robben will leave the club .
Dhoni looks to finish off in style, break the English voodoo
"Dhoni finishes off in style. A magnificent strike into the crowd! India lift the World Cup after 28 years!" exclaimed Ravi Shastri on commentary as M.S. Dhoni led India to a win in the final of the 2011 World Cup at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai with a humongous six off Sri Lanka pacer Nuwan Kulasekara.
Katich feels fitting Warner, Smith in XI is happy headache
Pencilling in David Warner and Steve Smith into the top-order could be a headache, but there is no doubt the pair would only make the playing XI richer as they strive to defend their World Cup crown in England and Wales next month, feels former batsman Simon Katich.
'The ultimate challenge': Djokovic to meet Nadal for 54th time with Rome title at stake
Novak Djokovic said he was relishing locking horns with his "greatest rival" Rafael Nadal as the pair set up the 54th clash of their careers Saturday in the Italian Open final. Djokovic battled past Argentina's Diego Schwartzman 6-3, 6-7 (2/7), 6-3 and meets defending champion Nadal on Sunday after the Spaniard earlier swept past Greece's Stefanos Tsitsipas 6-3, 6-4 to reach his 50th Masters final. "It's the ultimate challenge," said the Serbian world number one of playing second-ranked Nadal. "I've had so many matches against him. Up to date, we had the longest rivalry of tennis of all time. Every time we get to play each other, it's a thrill." Djokovic -- winner at the Madrid Open last weekend -- has had to battle through his last two matches in Rome. The 31-year-old won through in 2hr 31min against 24th-ranked Schwartzman, having saved two match points over three hours on Friday night against Juan Martin Del Potro. But Nadal, a 17-time Grand Slam winner, has not dropped a set all ..
Koepka challenge inspiring rivals like Tiger once did
Record-smashing PGA Championship leader Brooks Koepka says his secrets to success are simpler than people think while rivals are being inspired like Tiger Woods once motivated them. Three-time major winner Koepka fired a level-par 70 Saturday to stand on 12-under 198 and seize a 54-hole tournament-record seven-stroke lead entering Sunday's final round at Bethpage Black. No man has led a major by so much so late and lost. A victory would restore Koepka to the world number one ranking and make him the fifth PGA wire-to-wire winner after Hal Sutton in 1983, Ray Floyd in 1982, Jack Nicklaus in 1971 and Bobby Nichols in 1964. Koepka, whose calm under pressure and focus on shotmaking have become trademarks, shakes off any tensions the moment might bring. "Just another round of golf," Koepka said. "It's just like any other round I've ever played. I'm going to try to play a good, solid round. "It would be nice to be able to make a 10 on the last hole and be OK." Koepka takes pride in being ...
Koepka seizes record seven-shot PGA lead after 54 holes
Defending champion Brooks Koepka overcame struggles to grab a seven-stroke lead after Saturday's third round of the PGA Championship, the largest 54-hole advantage in tournament history. Third-ranked Koepka, in prime position for his fourth major title, fired a level-par 70 at Bethpage Black to stand on 12-under 198 entering Sunday's final round. "I feel confident. I feel good. I feel excited," Koepka said. "It's nice to have a seven-shot cushion. Just hit the center of the greens and try to par this place to death. "(I'll) just stick to my routine, do what I'm doing. I'm not thinking of seven-shot lead, winning the tournament. I'm thinking of what I need to do on the first shot first tee." The 29-year-old American owned a record edge over a pack on 205 that included top-ranked Dustin Johnson, fellow Americans Harold Varner and Luke List and Thailand's Jazz Janewattananond. "It's going to take something special to catch Brooks," Johnson said. "But it's definitely do-able on this ...
England 'red-hot favourite' for CWC19: Justin Langer
Australia coach Justin Langer on Sunday said that England are obviously the red-hot favourites going into the World Cup and said the team deserves to be the number one team in the world."They're playing brilliant cricket, aren't they? They're obviously the red-hot favourites for the tournament, they're playing here in their home country, they're playing brilliantly, they deserve to be the number one team in the world," cricket.com.au quoted Langer as saying."So we're looking forward to playing them. There's always good rivalry between us and it's going to be nice for us to see how we're at against the best team in the world," he added.England has had huge success in the ODI format after 2015 and the success can be credited to the change in the batting style. The team is now known for its aggressive mindset.But, Langer said Australia should stick to their formula to achieve success in the ODI format. He even said that the team will have to compete a little harder against England and ...
Jason Holder named as marquee player of Barbados Tridents for upcoming CPL
West Indies skipper Jason Holder was named as the marquee player by Barbados Tridents on Saturday for the upcoming Carribean Premier League (CPL).The team also announced that they will have a new ownership team to run their affairs.The USA-based CMG companies have acquired the ownership of Barbados Tridents. The company is no stranger to sports as they have had sponsorship deals with NBA teams including the Dallas Mavericks. The company also held the ownership of Jamaica Tallawahs (CPL team) in the past."Selling our ownership rights of the winning Jamaica Tallawahs held from 2014-2016 was the right move for us as a business, but we missed being involved in the Region and in CPL. When the chance to purchase the Tridents came along we were delighted, especially with the opportunity to bring good strong local partners onboard," Manish Patel, Principal of CMG said in an official statement."We can't wait to get started at enhancing the profile of this team on and off the field and to ...
Italian Open: Nadal beats Tsitsipas to enter final
Rafael Nadal has cruised into the 2019 Italian Open final at the expense of Stefanos Tsitsipas.
Triumph Knights keep title defence alive, Sobo Supersonics win
Parikshit Valsangkar and Akash Parkar lived up to their reputations as reliable all-rounders to keep defending champions Triumph Knights Mumbai North East in the hunt for a semi-final berth in the second edition of T20 Mumbai. The duo's impressive efforts with the bat and the ball helped the Knights pocket the must-win game against Eagle Thane Strikers by 38 runs on Saturday. While Valsangkar's quick-fire 39 (24b, 6x4, 1x6) at No. 3 gave the Knights the early impetus, Parkar's powerful 34 (20b, 1x4, 3x6) - aided by in-form Karan More's 36 (26b, 4x4) - gave the team a perfect finish to post a decent 162 for seven. The Strikers then faltered on a slowing pitch, with an accurate bowling display by all the bowlers. While Valsangkar was economical with his leggies, conceding just 19 runs in his three overs, Parkar got the prized scalp of dangerous Sarfaraz Khan in the 10th over. Yash Dicholkar bagged 3 wickets, including that of Strikers' captain Aditya Tare. Strikers ...
Indian shuttlers aim podium finish in Sudirman Cup
Top shuttlers P.V. Sindhu and Saina Nehwal will spearhead the Indian challenge at the prestigious Sudirman Cup which gets underway here on Sunday.
Nadal dispatches Tsitsipas to reach Rome final
Defending champion Rafael Nadal swept past Greece's Stefanos Tsitsipas 6-3, 6-4 to advance to his first final on clay this season at the Italian Open on Saturday. The eight-time Rome winner had been stunned by Tsitsipas, seeded eighth, in the semi-finals at the Madrid Open last weekend. But the 32-year-old Spaniard was clinical on the red clay of the Foro Italico winning through in 1hr 42min to maintain his record of having not dropped a set this week. Nadal next plays either world number one Novak Djokovic or Argentine Diego Schwartzman, who meet in the second semi-final. Nadal, seeded second, was playing his fourth straight semi-final, but had not managed to go further on clay this season. His run to the Rome final comes just a week before he starts his assault on a 12th French Open title at Roland Garros.
Manipur Police maul Bangalore United 10-0 in IWL
Captain Bala Devi scored six goals to lead Manipur Police to a 10-0 thrashing of Bangalore United in an Indian Women's League football match here on Saturday. Bala was on song as she struck in the 3rd, 15th, 16th, 23rd, 59th and 78th minutes against a hapless Bangalore defence. Daya Devi (21st and 36th), Rinaroy Devi (58th) and Mandakini Devi (74th) were the other goal scorers for the Manipur side at the Guru Nanak Stadium. With this win, Manipur Police finished second in Group II with 12 points, while Bangalore United end their campaign on the second-last spot with just four points. In another match, Sethu FC wrapped up their Group II campaign with a 7-0 victory over Baroda Football Academy. India international Sandhiya scored four goals for Sethu (14th, 37th, 39th and 86th) while defender Ashalata Devi (42nd), Indumathi Kathiresan (75th) and Ratanbala Devi (84th) found the target once each.