Page 585 - Sports
PCB announces fixtures for ODI series against Australia
Pakistan are slated to play ODI series against Australia in the UAE, beginning March 22.Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) on Sunday announced the fixtures for the five-match series, which will be played in Sharjah, Abu Dhabi and Dubai between March 22 and 31.Both the teams will look to prime their sides before the imminent 2019 ICC Cricket World Cup in England and Wales, starting May 30.Pakistan sit at the fifth position in the ODI rankings, while Australia are marginally behind at the sixth.Last time these two teams engaged in battle in this format was on the Australian soil in 2017, with Australia romping home with 4-1."Australia are the world champions and this series will provide the Pakistan cricket team an opportunity to assess their World Cup preparations," said Pakistan's Cricket Director Zakir Khan.Prior to the commencement of the series, Australia will take on India in two T20Is and a five-match ODI series, beginning February 24.
Disappointed Rohit looks ahead to Australia series
Disappointed after losing the Twenty20 International (T20I) series to New Zealand, India captain Rohit Sharma praised the hosts for their performance in the third match here on Sunday.
Maha score perfect 10; beat Dadra Nagar Haveli
Maharashtra Sunday played brilliantly and went on to record a thumping 10-0 win against a lowly Dadra Nagar Haveli in their second Group-B league match of the West Zone leg of the National Football Championship for the Santosh Trophy 2018-19 at Solapur. Hosts Maharashtra enjoyed a commanding 7-0 advantage at interval. This is the second successive win for Maharashtra, who now occupy top position in the group with six points and are virtually assured of a place in the semi-final. They meet Rajasthan in the last league game on Tuesday, a media release said. Earlier, Gujarat produced a strong second half performance and banged in five goals during this period to hand Rajasthan a thumping 6-0 defeat. Gujarat strikers Musamiyan Syed and Aditya Jha both netted a brace of goals each while Pavan Ramanuj and Arun Chaudhary added one each to round off the winning margin. Maharashtra started in domineering fashion but had to wait till the 18th minute to open the scoring with Sanket
Six of world's top 10 to play in Qatar
Despite the loss of world number one Naomi Osaka through injury, six of the women's top 10 players descend on Doha this week for the Qatar Open. Australian Open champion -- and the sport's new superstar -- Osaka withdrew last week due to a back injury, leaving a big hole to fill for tournament organisers, which they have done with a strong field including three former world number ones. Simona Halep is now the top seed and the Romanian will be joined by the Czech Republic's Karolina Pliskova and Germany's Angelique Kerber as the top seeds. All three were formerly at the top of the women's rankings, Halep only being ousted by Osaka last month after Melbourne. Halep, now ranked three in the world, and Kerber, sixth, are both Grand Slam winners. Pliskova, the world number five, is a former US Open finalist. Kerber is the first of these to arrive in Doha as she seeks to erase the memory of her crushing straights sets fourth round defeat against Danielle Collins in Australia. "It's a ...
Chennai begin final push for I-League title against Neroca
Eyes firmly set on a maiden national league triumph, league leaders Chennai City FC will take on Manipur outfit Neroca FC in a return leg Hero I-League fixture here on Monday. Chennai, which have had an impeccable season so far winning 10 out of their 15 games so far and losing only twice to debutants Real Kashmir FC, is atop the table with 33 points just a point ahead of Real Kashmir. And come Monday, Chennai would begin the final push towards their maiden national league title in their short four year history. The visitors can ill-afford to drop their guard, given the competitive nature of the league. Neroca, which fell away a bit in their campaign in recent times, losing three of their last four games, are placed fifth with 25 points from 16 games and are still among at least three other chasing teams with a realistic shot at the coveted I-League crown. "We will be playing tomorrow against Chennai not for the first position but for the best position. We will be playing at home and .
Indore to host National Masters TT tournament from Feb 12
About 1200 veteran players. including former international champions like Sunil Babras and Reeta Jain, will participate in the 26th National Masters Table Tennis Championship here beginning February 12. Jayesh Acharya, General Secretary of the Madhya Pradesh Table Tennis Association (MPTTA), which will host the six-day event, Sunday said that veteran players between 40 and 80 years of age would take part. Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh would have the largest number of participant players at 210 and 102, respectively, at the championship, to be held at Abhay Prashal sports complex. Matches will be held in categories like singles, doubles, mixed-doubles etc.
RSPB stun Punjab to lift Senior National Men's Hockey title
Railway Sports Promotion Board (RSPB) dished out a scintillating performance to stun defending champions Punjab 3-2 and lift the ninth Senior National Men's Hockey Championship crown here on Sunday. Harsahib Singh (35th, 45th minutes) scored a brace while Dilpreet Singh (57th) struck late for the winners. Punjab's goals came from the sticks of Rupinder Pal Singh (23rd) and Ramadeep Singh (60th). Both the teams rallied cautiously in the first quarter as they kept their defence tight and didn't allow space in their striking circles. With no potential circle penetrations made, the first quarter ended in a stalemate but it was the defending champions who made the first breakthrough in the 23rd minute. It was Rupinder, who gave Punjab the lead with a perfect dragflick. Only minutes before that, striker Ramandeep had come close to scoring what would have been a rollicking goal but he missed by inches. The lead, however, did not deter RSPB as they made their intentions clear with repeated ...
Karnataka, MP, Punjab win in Senior Women's National Hockey
Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh Hockey Academy, Maharashtra and Punjab registered wins in their respective pool matches on the third day of the ninth Senior Women's National Championship (Division A) here on Sunday. In Pool A, Karnataka registered their second consecutive win by beating Hockey Coorg 3-0. With this win, Karnataka remained in the second spot in their pool with six points and are in contention for a spot in the quarter-finals of the competition. In Pool B, Madhya Pradesh Hockey Academy secured a 3-1 win over Hockey Bhopal to register their second victory in as many games, while Maharashtra secured an emphatic 6-0 win over Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) in a Pool C game. Punjab later defeated Kerala Hockey 3-0 in a Pool D match to register their second win in as many games.
India 'A' beat France 'A' 3-2 in women's hockey match
The India 'A' women's hockey team came back from a goal down to beat France 'A' 3-2 in the second match of the series here on Sunday. In the first-ever international match played at the Veer Bahadur Singh Sports College ground here, Mariana Kujur (19th minute), Lalremsiami (30th) and Mumtaz Khan (34th) scored to eke out the win for the hosts after Mickaela Lahlah had given France 'A' lead in the 14th minute. The visitors showed some resilience in the last quarter and found a second goal through Guusje Van Bolhuis (58th), but the home team held on to register the series-levelling win. After the defeat in the first match, India 'A' team made a solid comeback to beat the visitors, but it was not the start that the hosts would have expected as the French team took the lead in the 14th minute through Lahlah, who finished off a brilliant team move to give her side the lead. Constant pressure on the Indian defense towards the end of the first quarter resulted in the first goal but the ...
England Lions draw first unofficial Test versus India 'A'
Ollie Pope (63) and Sam Hain (57) stood out on the final day with fighting half centuries as England Lions drew the first unofficial Test against India 'A' at the Krishnagiri stadium here Sunday. Beginning day four at 20 for no loss, openers Ben Duckett (30) and Max Holden (29) looked positive and brought up the team's 50 in the 12th over. India 'A' captain Ankit Bawne rotated his bowlers around, in an attempt to break the partnership. However, Duckett and Holden made smooth progress, hitting some crisp shots in the process. Paceman Avesh Khan got the first breakthrough for the home side, when he had Duckett caught by K L Rahul after the openers had added 82. Holden went seven overs later, giving Jalaj Saxena, who plays for Kerala in domestic cricket, his first wicket in the second innings. Hain and 21-year old Pope, a highly rated batsmen who has played two Tests so far, joined forces and defied the India 'A' bowlers for the next couple of hours. They were willing to play the waiting
3rd T20I: Kiwis beat India to claim series (Roundup)
New Zealand defeated India by four runs in the third and final Twenty20 International (T20I) to clinch the series 2-1, here on Sunday.
New Zealand hold off India to clinch T20I series
India fell short by four runs to lose the three-match T20I series 1-2 to New Zealand at the Seddon Park in Hamilton on Sunday.Mitchell Santner and Daryl Mitchell claimed two wickets each, while Scott Kuggeleijn and Blair Tickner chipped in with a piece each as hosts New Zealand restricted the touring side India to 208 runs for the loss of six wickets in the run-chase of 213 runs.As Indian opener Shikhar Dhawan fell cheaply for five, Rohit Sharma and Vijay Shankar injected some momentum before the latter was dismissed for 43.To support the Hitman, Rishabh Pant came out to share the crease. However, the wicketkeeper could not build a solid much-needed partnership and returned for 28, which opened the flurry of Indian wickets. Dhawan fell for 38 in the very next over.Hardik Pandya and former captain MS Dhoni, too, could not stay longer at the crease. Dhoni fell cheaply for two while Pandya returned with a double-digit score of 21.Having required 16 runs off last over, Dinesh Karthik and .
Disappointed with T20 series loss but lots of positives from NZ tour: Rohit
India captain Rohit Sharma said his team will return home with lots of positives despite a "disappointing" 1-2 defeat in the three-match T20 series. India savoured a historic Test and ODI bilateral series win in Australia before recording their biggest ODI series win on New Zealand soil. A first ever T20 series win would have been an icing on the cake but the hosts held their nerves to pull off a thrilling four-run victory on Sunday. "Disappointing to not cross the line but we fought well right till the end. 210 odd (213 target) was always going to be tough, but we were in it till the end. They held their nerve and kept hitting their yorkers," said Rohit at the post-match presentation. "Still lot of positives, we started well with the ODIs, wanted to do well here but the boys throughout the tour were excellent, put in a lot of hard work. They will be disappointed tonight but we've to learn from the mistakes we made and move ahead." India next host Australia for two T20s and five ODIs,
Australia's refusal forced Pakistan to play ODIs in UAE
Pakistan cricket authorities were forced to schedule all five one-day internationals against Australia in the United Arab Emirates after the Aussies refused to visit the Asian country over security fears. Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) had invited Australia to play two of the five one-day internationals in Pakistan to further their attempts to revive international cricket at home, suspended since attacks on the Sri Lankan team bus in 2009. Since then Pakistan have hosted finals of Pakistan Super League for the last two years and played matches against a World XI, Sri Lanka and the West Indies. A West Indies women's team played three Twenty20 internationals in Karachi from January 31-February 3 this year. But Cricket Australia (CA) acted on their government's advise not to tour Pakistan where no Australian senior team has played since 1998 over security fears. PCB director Zakir Khan showed disappointment over Australia's refusal to tour. "The PCB was optimistic that it will be able to ..
New Zealand deny India perfect finish, grab T20 series with 4-run win
New Zealand denied India a perfect finish to their highly successful tour Down Under by clinching the T20 series 2-1 with a narrow four-run win in the series-deciding third match here Sunday. India savoured a historic Test and ODI bilateral series win in Australia before recording their biggest ODI series win on New Zealand soil. A first ever T20 series win would have been an icing on the cake but the hosts held their nerves to pull off a thrilling victory. With Sunday's result, India have lost their first T20 series after winning nine and drawing one. India needed to knock off a stiff 213-run target to bring curtains on a memorable three-month tour in a befitting manner but fell just short. Exploiting batting friendly conditions at the small Seddon Park ground, New Zealand cut the Indian attack to shreds to post an imposing 212 for four. Opener Colin Munro produced a 40-ball 72 and shared a 80-run stand with fellow opener Tim Seifert (43) to lay foundation for a big score. Krunal ...
There is lot to improve: Smriti Mandhana post T20 series debacle
Indian opener Smriti Mandhana believes that there is a lost of scope for improvement in the women's team, which fought "really well" but lost their three-match T20 series against New ZealandThe 22-year-old said that for 70 to 80 per cent of the time, India were in winning position while adding that they need a player who could play through 20 overs."I think the girls fought really well. If you look back, for 70-80 per cent of the time we were in winning positions. This is a good take away but there is a lot of scope for improvement. We need to improve and address those situations," Mandhana told reporters."We need someone who could bat through 20 overs and someone who could go in the middle order and get runs, later on. We will be addressing all those issues, later," she added.Mandhana played a fabulous innings of 86 runs and was quite disappointed when she lost her wicket at a crucial stage."Today, I really wanted to finish the game for India. And I am really not that animated ever. .
Australia can lift World Cup trophy with Smith and Warner: Ricky Ponting
Newly-appointed assistant coach of Australian cricket team Ricky Ponting believes that the presence of former skipper Steve Smith and opener David Warner in the team would certainly help them lift the World Cup title.The 44-year-old said that India and England are going to be two standout teams in the 2019 World Cup but if Smith and Warner are added to the Australian squad, then the team would look as strong as any."I actually do [think Australia can win the World Cup], England and India are probably the two standout teams right now, but if you add Warner and Smith back into that line-up, then that team looks as strong as any," ESPNcricinfo quoted Ponting, as saying."I actually think Australian cricket is quite strong. Once we get Warner, Smith and Bancroft and those guys back into the fray, even looking ahead to the World Cup, I don't think there'll be too many better teams on paper going into the World Cup, and I've said that for a long time," he added.Smith, Warner, and pacer ...
Indian women's football team face Nepal in Hero Gold Cup
Hosts India would look to seal a place in the final of the Hero Gold Cup women's international football tournament when they face Nepal in their second round-robin match here on Monday. India began their campaign with a 1-0 win over Iran on Saturday with Anju Tamang finding the net in the 48th minute and a win on Monday would take them to final of the four-team tournament. The win against Iran was India's fifth on the trot after back-to-back victories against both Indonesia and Hong Kong in matches prior to this tournament. "We play for a win in every match, and against Iran it was no different. We knew this will be a tough match for us. We wanted to start the tournament of a positive note, said coach Maymol Rocky. India could have scored more but were unlucky as Sanju hit the woodwork in the second half and Anju muffed another golden chance in the dying minutes. "Everyone did their job on the pitch to the fullest. We were confident before the match. I am aware about the potential ...
We need someone to bat through 20 overs: Mandhana
Whitewashed by New Zealand women in the three-match T20 series, India opener Smriti Mandhana Sunday said her team needs to address its batting woes, especially after losing all the games from winning positions. India almost pulled off a dramatic win but failed to score a boundary in the final delivery to lose the third and final T20 by a mere two runs here. Chasing 162, Mandhana took the Indian team on course for a consolation win with a career-best knock of 86 from 52 balls but the visiting side failed to build on her scintillating knock to end the innings at 159 for 4. "Well I think the girls fought really well. If you look back at the series and see, 70 or 80 per cent of the times we were in winning positions. That's a good take away but there are a lot of things which we can improve," said Mandhana. "We need to address those (batting) issues as soon as possible. We need someone who can bat through 20 overs and someone who can go in at the middle overs and get runs later on," she ..
3rd T20I: Kiwis beat India to claim series
New Zealand defeated India by four runs in the third and final Twenty20 International (T20I) to clinch the series 2-1 here on Sunday.