Page 322 - Sports
Russell slams KKR's 'bad decisions', says team atmosphere not healthy
Star KKR all-rounder Andre Russell on Saturday lamented the "bad decisions" taken by his team in a disappointing IPL campaign which has seen the side lose six games in a row. Russell has been the biggest impact player for KKR with three man-of-the-match performances from their four wins but his team has let him down. "We have a good team but if you make bad decisions then you will always lose games and that's what we've been doing. If we had enough time, I could pinpoint a few games where if we just looked to bowl tighter in areas or bring in right bowlers at the right time, we could have won," Russell said. "As a professional cricketer, to be in this position is not the most healthiest position. In terms of decision, we have been bowling wrongly at the wrong time, that's what been causing for us to keep losing in simple ways," Russell said on the eve of the game against Mumbai Indians. The Jamaican who has amassed 406 runs from 10 innings at an outrageous strike rate of 209.27 was ...
Bakayoko happy in Italy despite racist abuse, says Gattuso
AC Milan coach Gennaro Gattuso said Saturday that Tiemoue Bakayoko is happy in Italy despite being the frequent target of racist chants by Lazio supporters in recent weeks. "He is on good form, those horrible songs hurt but he was prepared for them. he behaved admirably and he did not lose his head," Gattuso told reporters ahead of Sunday's trip to Torino. "He looks in good form, that he wants to leave is something you (the media) are saying. He's had a good season and he feels good in Italy." Lazio fans sung "this banana is for you, Bakayoko" before, during and after Wednesday's Coppa Italia semi-final second leg at the San Siro, won 1-0 by the Rome side who now face Atalanta in May's final. They have been singing that chant since the Serie A clash between the sides earlier this month, when Bakayoko and Franck Kessie caused controversy following scuffles at the end of the game by displaying Lazio defender Francesco Acerbi's shirt to fans like a trophy. Asked about the Lazio fans' ...
Legends tennis: 16 players advance to the main draw
Top 16 players--two players from each group--qualified for the main draw of the Investec Elite Legends Championship to be held at the MCA tennis Courts in Bandra Kurla Complex. The matches were played in round robin format with top two players with maximum points qualifying for the main draw. In Group F,Ajeeth dominated the proceedings winning all 3 ties. Ajeeth took down Shiv winning the first game by a narrow 7-6, 5-7, 7-1 margin. He faced another tough opponent in Subhash who but managed to hold him beating him 7-6, 7-6, 7-4. Ajeeth took down his final opponent Uttam with an identical scoreline of 7-5, 7-5, 7-5 to advance to the singles main draw. Meanwhile, Subhash who beat Shiv and Uttam convincingly fell prey to Ajeeth but managed to qualify for the main draw, a media release issued here said. In the Group A tie, Vinayak dominated the proceedings winning all his ties scoring 59 points defeating Gordon L and Rituraj in straight games. Mohan in spite of losingtwo of ..
Antonio inflicts Spurs first defeat at new stadium
Mauricio Pochettino admitted his Tottenham stars are suffering from fatigue after they lost for the first time at their new stadium as Michail Antonio fired West Ham to a surprise 1-0 victory on Saturday. Pochettino's side had won all four matches at their new ?1 billion Tottenham Hotspur stadium. But Antonio's clinical second half strike ended that run as the West Ham winger became the first visiting player to score in the plush arena. Third placed Tottenham's second defeat in their last three Premier League games put a dent in their bid to finish in the top four. They hold a three-point lead over fourth placed Chelsea and are four points ahead of fifth placed Arsenal, with both team in action on Sunday. It was a frustrating warm-up for Tottenham's Champions League semi-final first leg against Ajax in north London on Tuesday. Blaming Tottenham's hectic fixture list for their defeat, Pochettino said: "We cannot put away the circumstance. They arrived fresh and ready to compete, for us
Zidane wants attacking strength amid Hazard and Neymar rumours
Zinedine Zidane said Saturday that he hopes Real Madrid will bolster their attack this summer, doing little to deflate speculation surrounding moves for Neymar and Eden Hazard. "I have a clear idea what I want to do," Zidane told reporters. "The profiles and everything. I do not have every name, but I have clear idea what I want to achieve next year and we are working on it. "Our intention is to have more strength in attack." Since returning to manage Real in March, Zidane has voiced his admiration for stars such as Chelsea's Eden Hazard and Paul Pogba at Manchester United. This week another star linked to Real, Neymar, gave an interview in his native Brazil in which the Paris Saint-Germain star said he dreamed of playing with Hazard. Zidane was asked if playing for Real was a dream come true. "Yes, for many players," he replied. "They know that this club is important and many want to play here one day. It's natural." The theme continued when Zidane was asked if Hazard and Gareth Bale
Rajasthan ask Hyderabad to bat (Toss)
Rajasthan Royals' skipper Steve Smith won the toss and opted to bowl against Sunrisers Hyderabad in an Indian Premier League (IPL) tie at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium here on Saturday.
RR wins toss, opts to field first against Sunrisers
Rajasthan Royals won the toss and elected to bowl first against Sunrisers Hyderabad in an Indian Premier League match here Saturday. Rajasthan made two changes, bringing in Liam Livingston and Ashton Turner in place of Ben Stokes and Jofra Archer, both of whom have left to join their national side ahead of the upcoming ODI World Cup. Sunrisers skipper Kane Williamson and wicket-keeper batsman Wriddhiman Saha have returned to the playing eleven. Teams: Rajasthan Royals: Steven Smith (C), Ajinkya Rahane, Sanju Samson, Riyan Parag, Ashton Turner, Liam Livingstone, Stuart Binny, Shreyas Gopal, Jaydev Unadkat, Varun Aaron, Oshane Thomas. Sunrisers Hyderabad: Kane Williamson (C), David Warner, Manish Pandey, Vijay Shankar, Shakib Al Hasan, Wriddhiman Saha, Deepak Hooda, Rashid Khan, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Siddarth Kaul, Khaleel Ahmed.
WC call no surprise, time to deliver for WI: Russell
Not surprised by the World Cup call-up, star allrounder Andre Russell on Saturday said he was as hungry as ever to 'hit sixes' and 'score hundreds' for the West Indies in England and Wales this summer.
Beginning every game as the underdogs helps us, says Shreyas Iyer
Delhi Capitals are at the cusps of reaching the play-offs after six long years and captain Shreyas Iyer feels the reason for the success lies in the fact that his side starts every game as the underdogs. Delhi Daredevils was rechristened as Delhi Capitals before the start of the IPL this season and the change in name has brought with it a change in fortunes as well. The team is sitting third in the points table with 14 points from 11 games. "No one expected that we would do this well. We play every game as if it's a do or die situation. We go out as the underdogs in each game and that helps us. Ricky (Ponting) always says that (starting as underdogs) gets the best out of everyone," Iyer said on the eve of Delhi's match against Royal Challengers Bangalore here. Delhi need just two more points from three games to qualify for the play-offs but the 24-year-old said the team is looking to win at least two of their remaining games. "The job is just half done so far. We need to win one more .
Aim to win at least two of remaining three games: Iyer
After 14 points in their kitty from 11 games, Delhi Capitals need just one more win from their remaining three games to seal a play-off berth in the ongoing edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) but skipper Shreyas Iyer on Saturday said that his sole focus will be to win at least two of them.
IPL playoffs timing may change
Indian Premier League (IPL) playoff timings are likely to change, as decided by the Committee of Administrator (CoA) at a meeting held on Saturday.The playoffs schedule match is currently slated for 8 pm and the COA may revise the time to 7:30pm or even earlier- to 7pm. Earlier, the playoff matches were to play on the same time.The CoA, in their meeting, also discussed the appointment of WV Raman as Women's head coach, which some termed as 'illegal' and gave the issue to the ombudsman.It is now on the ombudsman's discretion to decide whether the appointment was legal or not.The CoA did not have any discussion on the Foreign Exchange Management Act issue.The next meeting is scheduled for May 3.
Mohun Bagan midfielder Sourav Das to join Mumbai City FC
Mohun Bagan midfielder Sourav Das is all set to join Indian Super League (ISL) side Mumbai City FC for the upcoming season.Das will leave his Kolkata club to join Mumbai City FC after being offered an opportunity by the ISL semi-finalists, Goal reported.The 22-year-old midfielder was a vital player in the Mohun Bagan squad and featured in 11 I-League matches.Moreover, he was also an integral part of the Bagan side which had won the Calcutta Football League (CFL) after nine years earlier this season.Das joined Mohun Bagan in the 2016-17, though he didn't play in that season. However, he did feature in the group stages of the AFC (Asian Football Confederation) Cup.Mumbai City FC already has notable Indians midfielders like Sehnaj Singh, Raynier Fernandes, and Milan Singh. Hence the addition of Das will give more depth to Jorge Costa's squad.
IPL play-offs likely to have 7.30 PM start
The timings of IPL play-offs beginning May 7 are likely to be preponed by 30 minutes to ensure matches don't stretch past midnight, as seen in a few games this season. "We have spoken to the broadcasters and most likely, the play-offs will have a 7.30 PM start instead of 8 PM," a BCCI official told PTI after a COA meeting here on Saturday. Games going beyond midnight has attracted criticism from fans while experts like former England captain Michael Vaughan have slammed over rate of teams in the competition. Four captains including Rohit Sharma, Ajinkya Rahane Ravichandran Ashwin and Virat Kohli have been fined Rs 12 lakh each for maintaining a slow over rate. In the 2018 edition, the play-offs had a 7 PM start. Qualifier 1 of IPL 2019 will be played in Chennai on May 7, Eliminator and Qualifier 2 in Vizag on May 8 and 10 while the final will be held in Hyderabad on May 12.
Hungry to smash sixes in World Cup: Russell
High on his rampaging form in the IPL, West Indies hard-hitting batsman Andre Russell Saturday said he is "hungry to smash sixes" in the upcoming World Cup, beginning May 30 in UK. Russell, who last played an ODI in July 2018, has been named in West Indies' 15-man preliminary squad and he is looking forward to continue his IPL form at the mega-event. He has score 406 runs in 10 innings at a startling strike rate of 209.27 for the Kolkata Knight Riders in the ongoing IPL. "I'm so hungry to represent the West Indies and to smash sixes. I want to do what I've been doing here and score hundreds," the KKR star player, who averages 28 in 52 ODIs and has taken 65 wickets, told reporters at the Eden Gardens here. Russell last featured in an ODI for the West Indies nearly a year ago during Bangladesh's three-match tour of the Caribbean. He played just one game before pulling out of the series with a knee injury. Recalled for the last two ODIs against England earlier this year, he failed to ...
Lahiri-Sharma duo lying 29th at Zurich Class golf
Indian golfing duo of Anirban Lahiri and Shubhankar Sharma shot 67 in the best-ball and then followed it up with a three-under 69 in the alternate shot to be placed tied 29th at the USD 7.3 million Zurich Classic of New Orleans here. Lahiri and Sharma, who are close friends despite the age difference of almost nine years, were eight-under and were provisionally tied 29th when darkness suspended second-round play in the team event. The Indian were among the handful of players to play 36 holes on Friday as they played both their rounds on a long day TPC Louisiana. Peter Malnati and Billy Hurley III topped the leaderboard at 14-under 130. Malnati and Hurley played 36 holes Friday, shooting a best-ball nine-under 63 in the morning in the rain-delayed first round and a 67 in alternate-shot play in the afternoon in the second round. Play was delayed for more than seven hours Thursday, with only half of the 80 two-man teams teeing off and the Indians were among those who did not get to hit a
Gurpreet, Sunil settle for silver at Asian Wrestling C'ships
India's Gurpreet Singh and Sunil Kumar settled for a silver medal each in their respective Greco-Roman categories at the Asian Wrestling Championships here on Saturday. On the penultimate day of the competition, India finished with just two silver in the Greco-Roman wrestling even as Prem missed out on a bronze medal finish. Gurpreet had to be satisfied with a second spot after being handed a 0-8 defeat by Hyeonwoo Kim of Korea in the final of 77kg category. However on his way to the final, Gurpreet put up an impressive show, thrashing Bakhit Sharif K Badr of Qatar 10-0 in the quarterfinals before eking out a narrow 6-5 victory over Tamerlan Shadukayev of Kazakhstan in the last four round. In 87kg, Sunil Kumar stormed into the final after prevailing over Azamat Kustubayev of Kazakhstan 6-6 in his semifinal bout, while he had earlier beaten Tokhirdzhon Okhonov of Tajikistan 14-7 in the last eight stage. But just like Gurpreet, Sunil too failed to clinch the top spot as he went down to .
BCCI Ombudsman to review Raman's appointment as women's team coach
The appointment of women's head coach W V Raman in controversial circumstances will be reviewed by BCCI Ombudsman and Ethics Officer D K Jain, the Committee of Administrators (CoA) decided in a meeting here on Saturday. Former India opener Raman was appointed in December following a selection process conducted by an ad-hoc panel comprising former captain Kapil Dev, Anshuman Gaekwad and Shantha Rangaswamy. However, the then two-member CoA comprising chairman Vinod Rai and Diana Edulji were strongly divided on the coach selection process. While Rai had approved the appointment, Edulji called the entire process a "sham and unconstitutional", saying the the Cricket Advisory Committee comprising Sachin Tendulkar, VVS Laxman and Sourav Ganguly, which had requested for more time, was entrusted with the responsibility of picking the coach. Four months later, the matter has been referred to the Ombudsman. "We have referred the matter to the Ombudsman and it will be his call whether the ...
Diksha stays at third after second round in Morocco
Rising Indian woman golfer Diksha Dagar a modest shot two-over 75 but still managed to hold on to her tied third spot after a tough second round in the Lalla Meryem Cup at Golf Dar Es Salam in Morocco. Diksha, who was third after the first round, managed to hung on tenaciously to her place with three others at two-under 144 after a tough outing on an extremely windy day. Nuria Iturrios from Spain had a one-shot lead into the final two rounds after carding a two-under-par 71. Iturrios, 23, made three birdies on the front nine and missed a short putt at the par-3 13th to sit at seven-under-par. The 2016 event champion is a stroke ahead of the first round leader Lina Boqvist, with Eleanor Givens, Camilla Lennarth, Diksha and Noemi Jimenez Martin four strokes further back. Diksha, winner of the Investec South African Women's Open, opened the week with four-under 69. Into the second round, Dagar had three birdies against five bogeys. Iturrios is full of confidence as she won her second ...
Gurpreet settles for silver at Asian Wrestling C'ships
India's Gurpreet Singh settled for a silver medal in Greco-Roman 77kg at the Asian Wrestling Championships here on Saturday. On the penultimate day of the competition, Gurpreet had to be satisfied with a second spot finish after being handed a 0-8 defeat by Hyeonwoo Kim of Korea in the final. However on his way to the final, Gurpreet put up an impressive show, thrashing Bakhit Sharif K Badr of Qatar 10-0 in the quarterfinals before eking out a narrow 6-5 victory over Tamerlan Shadukayev of Kazakhstan in the last four round. In 87kg, Sunil Kumar stormed into the final after prevailing over Azamat Kustubayev of Kazakhstan 6-6 in his semifinal bout. He will take on Hossein Ahmad Nouri of Iran in the title clash later in the day. Earlier, Sunil had beaten Tokhirdzhon Okhonov of Tajikistan 14-7 in the last eight stage. Prem is another Indian wrestler who is in contention for a medal after he made the bronze-medal play-off in 130kg category despite going down to Muminjon Abdullaev of ...
Dravid will need to apply for NCA head coach job after BCCI decides to invite applications
India great and junior coach Rahul Dravid will need to apply for the post of head coach at the National Cricket Academy after the BCCI on Saturday decided to invite fresh applications. The BCCI will be inviting applications for the newly created position of head coach and Dravid, who is already in charge of India A and the U-19 team, is the front-runner for the job. "A transparent application process will be followed like it is the case now with all BCCI jobs. Dravid is obviously a favourite for the role as he is already in charge of the junior national teams," said a BCCI official after a Committee of Administrators (CoA) meeting here. While COO Toofan Ghosh will be taking care of the administrative work at NCA in Bengaluru, the head coach will be responsible for a complete revamp which will include hiring of fresh coaching staff at all levels, besides monitoring the upcoming generation of cricketers. Dravid will need to apply for the job as BCCI has done away with the practice of ...