Page 511 - Sports
IPL: Consistent KKR aim for 3rd title
Consistency has been their forte, but former champions Kolkata Knight Riders will aim for nothing less than a third title when they renew acquaintances in the 12th edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL).
Nagpur ODI: India to bat first against Aussies
Australia won the toss and asked India to bat first in the second ODI of the ongoing five-match ODI series here at the Vidarbha Cricket Association Stadium on Tuesday.Following the toss, Indian skipper Virat Kohli said he was looking to bat first, considering the pitch conditions.Talking about the team combination, Kohli informed that they have not made any changes in the playing XI from the first ODI."We wanted to bat first, pretty much a no-brainer. Not much dew in the evening and it is a dry surface. Not typical of the kind of pitches you get here does not look like it will bounce much. We expect it to deteriorate further as the game progresses. We have the same team. We spoke about the middle order coming through when the top three does not click, so we need such games. Guys are looking for opportunities. It was a good performance for us, hopefully, we can keep it going," Kohli said after the toss.Australian captain Aaron Finch, on the other hand, made two changes in the team ...
Real's Vinicius can be among world's best, says Casemiro
Real Madrid teenager Vinicius Junior could become one of the best players in the world within three years, according to his Brazil and Los Blancos teammate Casemiro.
Panama name nine World Cup players for Brazil friendly
Panama coach Dely Valdes has included nine players from the country's 2018 football World Cup squad in his 18-man list for a friendly against Brazil later this month.
Will Smith to play Williams sisters' father in 'King Richard'
Will Smith is set to play father of tennis icons Venus and Serena Williams in the biopic "King Richard". According to Variety, the film will focus on coach Richard Williams overcoming hardship, scepticism, controversy, and his own troubled past to instruct his daughters, starting when they were four years old on the tennis courts of Compton, California - despite having no background in the sport. "King Richard" will be based on a script by Zach Baylin, which was a runner-up on the 2018 Black List. Tennis stars in their own way, Serena has won 23 Grand Slam singles titles, starting with the US Open in 1999 and Venus has seven Grand Slam singles to her credit, starting with Wimbledon in 2000. The sisters share 14 Grand Slam doubles championships combined. Tim and Trevor White are attached as producers. Smith will also produce.
Australia to field vs India in 2nd ODI
Australia won the toss and elected to field against India in the second One Day International here on Tuesday.
Courtois was wrong in criticising Bale, says Jermaine Jenas
Jermaine Jenas, the former team-mate of Gareth Bale has lashed out at Real Madrid's goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois after he publicly criticised his fellow team member Gareth Bale and accused him of being an outsider in the dressing room."I thought Courtois was bang out of order to say what he said about Gaz in public," goal.com quoted Jenas as saying."I got on really well with him and one of the things I loved about him was that he was his own man. If we were going out as a squad, he would often opt out and stay at home with his family, but I never had a problem with that.""He went back home to spend time with his family in Cardiff all the time and that is him. Is there anything wrong with that? That's Gaz. He has a young family, he likes to spend time with them, so why should he go out partying with the lads every few minutes?"Earlier Courtois suggested that Bale's nickname in the Real Madrid dressing room is kept as "the golfer" as he rarely socialises with team-mates and prefers to ...
Shane Watson guides Quetta Gladiators to PSL play-offs
Australia's former all-rounder smashed a 91 run knock off just 55 balls to guide his team Quetta Gladiators to seal a place in playoffs of the Pakistan Super League ( PSL).Quetta comfortably chased the target of 165, winning the match by six wickets against Peshawar Zalmi. Watson stitched together a partnership of 129 runs for the second wicket with Ahmed Shehzad.Watson's knock of 91 was his third half-century of this season of PSL. The all-rounder made Peshawar pay for their lapses in the field, striking six fours and six sixes in his knock.As a result of this win, Quetta became the first side in the tournament to make it past the group stage and they currently stand on the top of the table with 12 points from eight games.There is a big concern for Quetta regarding Watson's availability in the Pakistan leg of the PSL.The 37-year-old has said that he has not made up his mind yet on travelling to Pakistan and he has insisted that the squad has enough depth to do well without him.Quetta
2nd ODI: Australia win toss, opt to bowl against India
Australia captain Aaron Finch won the toss and opted to bowl in the second ODI against India here Tuesday. For Australia, Shaun Marsh and Nathan Lyon have come in for Ashton Turner and Jason Behrendorff. India are unchanged for the match. The hosts won the opening ODI by six wickets in Hyderabad. Teams: India: Virat Kohli(capt), Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan, Ambati Rayudu, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Kedar Jadhav, Vijay Shankar, Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Shami, Jasprit Bumrah. Australia: Aaron Finch(capt), Usman Khawaja, Marcus Stoinis, Peter Handscomb, Glenn Maxwell, Shaun Marsh Alex Carey, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Pat Cummins, Adam Zampa, Nathan Lyon.
All England C'ship: Sindhu, Saina aim to break 18-year-old jinx
A challenging draw stands in the way but India's top shuttlers PV Sindhu and Saina Nehwal will nonetheless fancy their chances of ending a nearly two-decade old title jinx at the All England Championship starting Wednesday. It was Sindhu and Saina's mentor and current chief national coach P Gopichand, who was the last Indian to win the championship back in 2001. Only the top 32 in the Badminton World Federation (BWF) rankings qualify for the tournament and out of them, only three Indians have been seeded -- the third being Kidambi Srikanth (seeded seventh) in the men's event. Fifth-seeded Olympic and world championship silver-medallist Sindhu will square off against former world no 2 Sung Ji Hyun of South Korea at the USD one million event. London Olympics bronze-medallist Saina, seeded eighth, will start her campaign against Scotland's Kristy Gilmour. The star shuttlers have had contrasting results against their first-round opponents. While Saina enjoys a 6-0 overall record against ..
Want to show I am good enough, says Dawid Malan
England's top-order batsman Dawid Malan is keen to prove a point in the three-match T20 series against Windies. The batsman asserted that he wants to show that he is good enough to play all over the world."I definitely believe I am good enough to play Test cricket. Five [six] innings ago in Test cricket, I passed fifty. In my last T20 innings, I passed fifty. I still believe I can play international cricket. I still believe I am good enough. It is just when I get the opportunity to score runs to show the selectors and both captains, and people around the world, that I am good enough," International Cricket Council(ICC) quoted Malan as saying.The player last played for England in a Test match against India in Birmingham in August 2018. He was dropped from the Test squad as a result of his poor performances, since then he has been missing from International Cricket.Malan would be hoping to string together good performances as the regulars Jos Buttler and Ben Stokes have been rested for .
Minerva Punjab to get re-match against Real Kashmir: AIFF
Defending champions Minerva Punjab FC, who pulled out of their I-League clash against Real Kashmir in Srinagar citing security concerns, will get a re-match against the debutants, the All India Football Federation (AIFF) has decided. The game was originally scheduled for February 18 but did not take place after Minerva refused to travel to Srinagar, insisting that their foreign players had been advised against it by their respective embassies in the aftermath of the Pulwama terror attack. Minerva said the AIFF failed to give written security assurances that were sought by the club after the terror attack which killed more than 40 CRPF personnel. "The AIFF Emergency Committee on Monday decided that there will be a re-match of Real Kashmir and Minerva Punjab but the date and venue is yet to be decided," I-League CEO Sunando Dhar told PTI. "We have communicated this to Real Kashmir (since they are the host team) and we will take a decision (on the venue and date) after they give a reply.
Serena Williams handed tough draw in Paribas Open
A year after returning from break, Serena Williams was handed a tough draw at the BNP Paribas Open.The 23-time major champion could end up facing former World number one Victoria Azarenka in a second-round match, as the full draw was revealed on Monday.Number ten seed Williams was drawn into the same quarter of the draw as number four seed Sloane Stephens and number seven seed Kiki Bertens in the bottom half, and she will face either Azarenka or Vera Lapko after an opening-round match.Azarenka has already the upper hand over Williams and she defeated her in the finals of the 2016 tournament.Williams is up for an uphill task as even if she manages to win her second-round match, she could end up facing number 20 seed and two-time major champion Garbine Muguruza.In other quarters of the second half, number two seed Simona Halep will face the winner of Barbora Strycova or a qualifier first up.On the top half of the draw, a rematch of the recent loss looms over the defending champion and ..
Imran Tahir to quit ODIs after World Cup
South Africa's leg-spinner Imran Tahir has decided to step down from international ODI cricket after World Cup 2019."I have always wanted to play in the World Cup, it would be a great achievement for me to play for this great team. I have a mutual understanding with Cricket South Africa and going forward I decided that I would finish at the World Cup, that is why I am contracted until then," the International Cricket Council quoted Tahir as saying.Tahir, Pakistan-born spinner will make himself available for the T20 franchise cricket after the World Cup.The 39-year-old has said that he will continue to play the T20 format for South Africa and he would like to see young talent prosper for the Proteas in the ODI format."After that, Cricket South Africa has allowed me to go and play around the world in various leagues but I would also love to play T20 cricket for South Africa. I think I have the ability and can play a role in T20 cricket for South Africa. I am grateful for the ...
Broadcast dispute to cost Cricket West Indies
Cricket West Indies look all set to take a substantial financial hit after Sky declined to pay for the two T20I games in St.Kitts this weekend.The value of such type of games is usually around US$1million each, but neither of the matches were part of the package that was agreed when the broadcast deal was made several years ago resulting in the reluctance of Sky to pay anywhere near that amount, as per ESPN Cricinfo.Sky are arguing that they have paid a heavy amount for the rest of the tour which was originally scheduled to contain just one T20I.The matches will still be brodcasted in the UK. Cricket West Indies could refuse to allow Sky access to their pictures. The board is providing the cameras, the crew and the feed, they are prepared to compromise their relationship with either their sponsors or the St Kitts government meaning Sky could end up broadcasting the games for next to no cost.If this happens, Cricket West Indies could live stream the matches on Youtube, Twitter and ...
Morne Morkel could star in Big Bash 10 as a local player
South African former fast-bowler Morne Morkel could qualify as a local player in the Big Bash League as early as next year, but it is likely that he will still be considered as an import for the 2019-20 season.Morkel, who has now retired from the international cricket, has said that he is keen to play in the Big Bash and Sheffield Shield having relocated to Sydney with his family."Australia is going to be home for me from now on so hopefully we can sort out passports and visas and those sort of things," cricket.com.au quoted Morkel as saying."I understand there is a process and I respect that.""I am open to any possibilities and opportunities that come my way because I am going to base myself in Australia for the next couple of years or however long it may be. Australia's going to be my home so I am definitely trying to get my foot in the door."Citizenship appears out of reach in the short term, but he could very well qualify as a local player in time for Big Bash if he is able to ...
Trump serves fast-food again at White House
US President Donald Trump has once again served fast-food at a White House sports event after a similar dinner for a university football team in January, the media reported.
Manchester City owners likely to invest in Indian club this year: Chief Executive Soriano
English Premier League giants Manchester City's owners City Football Group (CFG) are planning to invest in an Indian football team by the end of this year, said chief executive Ferran Soriano. City owner Sheikh Mansour of Abu Dhabi Royal Family, has recently purchased a Chinese third division club Sichuan Jiuniu, a seventh addition to their bouquet of clubs, which also include New York City, Melbourne City, Japan's Yokohama F Marinos, Atletico Torque and Girona. "We have some interest in some markets and countries where there is a genuine football passion and opportunities, like China, but also India. So there might be other opportunities in Asia," Sorianio was quoted by www.skysports.com. The CEO said that City, currently on top of EPL points table, have been exploring the Indian market for the past two years now. "With all these developments, we have to be patient. We have been looking at India for nearly two years now. I would say this year we'll end up doing an investment in ...
'Put the egos to one side' - Dani Alves and PSG's drive for Champions League glory
Dani Alves jokes that Paris Saint-Germain are still Champions League "virgins", but the presence of players like the decorated Brazilian only helps make them more credible contenders to win the coveted trophy. In a glittering career, Alves has won the Champions League three times with Barcelona and reached another final with Juventus. He is a veteran now, his 36th birthday falling several weeks before this season's final, and he is conscious of what players like him and goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon, now 41, can add to a PSG squad already featuring Neymar and Kylian Mbappe. "We know how to win and how to lose. What we try to transmit to the others is that either we all go together in the same direction, or we leave the doors open to a defeat," Alves tells AFP in an exclusive interview. He is speaking at the club's training ground in the upmarket Paris suburb of Saint-Germain-en-Laye, 48 hours before their last 16, second leg at home to Manchester United. The mood is relaxed, with ...
Ajax hopes to take advantage of Ramos' absence
Needing goals, Ajax hopes to take advantage of Sergio Ramos' absence when it faces Real Madrid in the second leg of the round of 16 in the Champions League. Ramos, the Real Madrid captain, is suspended from Tuesday's match because of an accumulation of yellow cards. "Ramos is Madrid's boss on the field and in the backline," Ajax coach Erik ten Hag said on Monday through a translator. "His absence clearly is a loss tactically, but also mentally. It's a loss that will clearly be felt by Real Madrid. It obviously won't be as good as a team as if it had Ramos on the field." Nacho Fernandez is expected to replace Ramos in central defense, playing alongside Raphael Varane. Ramos will also miss the first leg of the quarterfinals if Madrid advances, as UEFA said he deliberately provoked the yellow card in the first leg so he could be available for future matches. Ajax, playing in the round of 16 for the first time since 2006, needs to score at least two goals to reverse the 2-1 home loss in ..