Page 614 - Sports
Former England forward Crouch joins Burnley
Peter Crouch is back in the Premier League after the former England striker joined Burnley from Stoke on Thursday. Crouch linked up with Sean Dyche's side after Burnley agreed to swap Wales striker Sam Wolves for the 6ft 7in (201cm) former Liverpool and Tottenham star. The 38-year-old has scored 108 goals in 462 top-flight games throughout his career. He has joined Burnley on a short-term deal until the end of the season, with manager Sean Dyche hoping the veteran can provide an extra boost in the battle against relegation. Crouch has played 23 times in the Championship this season, starting only twice and scoring once. He also scored against Shrewsbury in the FA Cup third round. Only 23 players have scored more than Crouch's 108 goals since the inception of the Premier League in 1992 -- he just needs four more to climb into the top 20. "I still want to achieve things. I want to get more games in the Premier League and I would love to add to the 100 Premier League goals," Crouch ...
Barcelona bring forward Todibo transfer
Barcelona have brought forward their summer move for Jean-Clair Todibo and will sign the defender from Toulouse immediately, the Spanish club announced on Thursday. Todibo had been due to join Barca on a free transfer in July, when his contract with Toulouse was set to expire. The 19-year-old, however, has since been sidelined by the French club, prompting Barcelona to seek an earlier transfer. AFP Sport understands a fee of around 2 million euros was agreed. A Barcelona statement read: "The signed agreement includes the immediate arrival of the French player, who will sign a contract with the Club for the next four and a half seasons, until the end of the 2022/23 campaign." Toulouse president Olivier Sadran had criticised Barca's "arrogance" for snapping up Todibo on a free transfer but was persuaded a January deal would be best for all parties. Todibo, who models himself on Paris Saint-Germain's Brazilian centre-back Thiago Silva, will wear the number six shirt at the Camp Nou. He ..
Benzema double sends Madrid into Copa del Rey semis
Karim Benzema fired Real Madrid into the semi-finals of the Copa del Rey on Thursday by scoring twice in a 3-1 win over Girona. Benzema was on target in the first leg too, a 4-2 victory at the Santiago Bernabeu last week, and he continued his brilliant burst of form with another pair at Montilivi. Pedro Porro pulled one back for Girona but any hopes of a comeback were extinguished when Marcos Llorente drove in for a 7-3 win on aggregate. Madrid join Barcelona, Real Betis and Valencia in the draw for the last four on Friday. Barca, who are chasing a record fifth cup success in a row, will be the ones to avoid but Santiago Solari's team are gaining momentum, having won six out of their last seven games, with the resumption of the Champions League just around the corner. Benzema has been key to that run, the Frenchman scoring five goals now in three matches and even casting doubt on Gareth Bale's place in the side. Bale has only just returned from a calf injury but was left out of the ...
Burns century puts Australia in control against Sri Lanka
Joe Burns stroked Australia's first century of the summer Friday in a stirring fightback after they lost three early wickets against a second-string Sri Lankan attack in the first-ever Test played in Canberra. Australian skipper Tim Paine won the toss at the Manuka Oval and put his side in on a flat track conducive to batting, a gambit that looked to be paying off after some early wobbles. By tea, they had stretched their lead to 220 for three with Burns not out 107 and Travis Head on 91 in an ominous 192-run stand. The pair dug Australia out of a hole after they lost Marcus Harris, Usman Khawaja and Marnus Labuschagne cheaply to be in trouble at 28 for three. After weathering the storm and as the new ball lost its shine, the pair started cashing in, ruthlessly exposing the inexperienced attack. Back in the side after being dropped for the series against Pakistan and India, Burns survived a dropped catch on 34, but was otherwise invincible and brought up his fourth Test ton off 147 ...
Mithali becomes first female to play 200 ODIs
India captain Mithali Raj on Friday became the first female cricketer to play 200 ODIs, adding another achievement to her illustrious career. The 36-year-old is also the highest run-getter in ODIs with 6622 runs at an average of 51.33, including seven hundreds. Mithali could not make a big impact in her 200th game, scoring nine off 28 balls as India were bowled out for 149 in the third and final ODI against New Zealand here. She had hit an unbeaten 63 in the second ODI, helping India take an unassailable 2-0 lead in the series. Mithali made her ODI debut way back in 1999 and has featured in 200 games out of the 263 ODIs India have played. She has also played 10 Tests and 85 T20s.
Rafael Nadal all set to get hitched
Former world number one Rafael Nadal is all set to get married to his long time girlfriend Mery Perello following the recent engagement of the couple.The 32-year-old has proposed Perello for marriage and soon, the two will tie the knot. The same was confirmed by the ATP in a recent tweet.The Spaniard recently appeared in the Australian Open where he was defeated by world number one Novak Djokovic in the final match of the Grand Slam event.Nadal has won a total of 17 Major titles and has been a runner up in eight Grand Slam events. Famously known as the 'king of clay', he has bagged a total of 11 French Open titles, highest by anyone in the history of tennis.
Windies on top as England collapse again
West Indies' surprising dominance of England continued on the opening day of the second Test with the home side's fast bowlers bundling out the visitors for 187 at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in Antigua on Thursday. Already 1-0 up in the three-match series, the Caribbean team's openers negotiated 21 testing overs to the close and the pair of Kraigg Brathwaite and John Campbell will resume on the second morning at 30 without loss in reply. Thrashed by the comprehensive margin of 381 runs in the first Test in Barbados less than a week earlier, England again struggled to cope with the combined assault of the home side's pacers. As in the first innings of the first Test when they were routed for just 77, Kemar Roach again led the assault with four wickets. He was ably supported by the fastest of the quartet, Shannon Gabriel (three for 45) while Alzarri Joseph and captain Jason Holder combined for the remaining three wickets as they effectively exploited a green, sporting track to ...
Australia's Test century drought ended by Burns
A Test century-drought stretching through the home summer series against India and Sri Lanka was finally ended on Friday by Joe Burns, who became the first Australian to reach three figures since October. The opener, in his 16th Test, brought up his ton off 147 balls on a batting-friendly wicket in the second Test at Canberra. It was the first for Australia since Usman Khawaja's 141 against Pakistan in Dubai in October and only the second century an Australian has scored since the fifth Ashes Test in Sydney almost 13 months ago. Before Burns made his mark, Travis Head's 84 in Brisbane against Sri Lanka was Australia's highest score in five home Tests this season. Head was also closing in on a century in Canberra and was 86 not out.
Australia fight back after Sri Lanka take three early wickets
Joe Burns and Travis Head led a fightback after Australia lost three quick wickets against a second-string Sri Lankan attack in the first-ever Test played in Canberra on Friday. Australian skipper Tim Paine won the toss at the Manuka Oval and put his side in on a flat track conducive to batting, with his team looking to record their first century of the summer. By lunch, they had struggled to 103 for three with Burns not out 46 and Head on 39 in a face-saving 75-run stand. It was a dire start by Australia against a seriously depleted Sri Lankan attack and against a team they had beaten by an innings and 40 runs in the first Test at Brisbane. Pace duo Lahiru Kumara and Dushmantha Chameera picked up injuries in that rout and have returned to Sri Lanka, with the inexperienced Kasun Rajitha and Vishwa Fernando taking their place. And in a big blow, Suranga Lakmal, their best bowler in Brisbane, was ruled out on the morning of the Test with a stiff back, with debutant Chamika Karunaratne ..
Indian women all out for 149 in third ODI
India were all out for 149 in the third and final women's ODI against New Zealand here on Friday. Deepti Sharma top-scored for India with 52 while Anna Peterson starred with the ball for the hosts, taking four wickets for 28 runs in 10 overs. New Zealand won the toss and opted to field. India lead the series 2-0. Brief scores: India 149 all out in 44 overs (Sharma 52; Peterson 4/28, Tahuhu 3/26).
Mithali Raj becomes first woman cricketer to play 200 ODIs
Mithali Raj on Friday became the first-ever women cricketer to play 200 one-day internationals. The ongoing third ODI against New Zealand marks the 200th appearance of the Indian women's ODI team skipper.The 36-year-old, who made her ODI debut in June 1999, is serving the game for 19 years and 219 days, now. This is fourth-highest among the men cricketers too as Mithali is just behind Sachin Tendulkar (463), Sanath Jayasuriya (445) and Javed Miandad (233).Interestingly, Indian women have played a total of 263 ODIs in their history and Mithali has been a part of 200 of them.The right-hand batswoman is also the highest run-scorer in ODI among women cricketers with a total of 6613 runs in her kitty, till now, which includes seven hundreds and 52 half centuries.Mithali had played her first ODI at the age of 16 years and 205 days on India's tour of Ireland and England. In the opening innings against Ireland, she had played an unbeaten knock of 114 runs making her the youngest female player
Akila Dananjaya to undergo bowling Test in Chennai
Sri Lanka spinner Akila Dananjaya is all set to undergo a bowling Test in Chennai Center for Sports Science (CSS) of the Sri Ramachandra Institute of Higher Education and Research.The development was confirmed by the Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) in a statement that read, "Spinner Akila Dananjaya will fly to Chennai, India tomorrow morning (February 1, 2019) to reassess his bowling action. The reassessment will take place at the Center for Sports Science (CSS) of the Sri Ramachandra Institute of Higher Education and Research in Chennai."The 25-year-old was reported for a suspected bowling action during a Test series against England, last year. He was, later, banned from bowling by the International Cricket Council in December 2018.Dananjaya has emerged as Sri Lanka's one of the main bowlers in the limited-over cricket. In last 16 one day matches, he has picked up 28 wickets with an average of 23. In Tests, he has scalped a total of 27 wickets in overall 5 matches that he has played so fat ..
Spain hold Indian women's hockey team to 2-2 draw
Spain pulled up a remarkable comeback to hold India, which fumbled on a good opportunity to take control, to a 2-2 draw in the deciding encounter here at Murcia on Thursday.India won the third match 5-2, while Spain had registered a narrow 3-2 win in the opening match. With the second match ending in a draw, both the teams have leveled the series 1-1.India got off to a rollicking start as they caught the Spanish defence on the wrong foot. An infringement by a Spanish defender saw India being awarded a penalty stroke only minutes into the first quarter.Though India missed scoring from this opportunity, Deep Grace Ekka made up for the missed chance with a well-converted penalty corner awarded in the 8th minute.India's 1-0 lead doubled in the second quarter when their forward line worked in tandem to penetrate into the striking circle with striker Navneet Kaur scoring a beautiful field goal off Rani's assistance in the 26th minute. At the second hooter, India had registered a comfortable
ICC Men's Cricket World Cup 2023 to be played in India
International Cricket Council CEO and former South Africa cricketer David Richardson on Thursday announced that the 13th edition of Men's Cricket World Cup will be played in India in 2023.Speaking at an event, Richardson said: "There is so much to look forward to. We have two T20 events (Women and Men) in Australia in 2020, followed by the first Test Championship final. Then we have Women's World Cup in New Zealand in 2021, Under 19 World Cup. And of course then we have two events in India - the next T20 World Cup at the end of 2021 and the Men's World Cup itself in 2023."In forthcoming ICC Men's Cricket World Cup 2019 scheduled in England and Wales, ten best teams in the world will fight in a very competitive tournament.When asked about his preferred team, the former South Africa wicket-keeper batsman said: "India are playing really well and England have probably got their best one-day team that they could have for many years. There is no expectation on South Africa this time to do ..
ISL: Delhi start new year with 2-0 win over Kerala
Delhi Dynamos started their new year with a win, defeating Kerala Blasters 2-0 in front of the home fans in the Indian Super League (ISL) clash at the Jawaharlal Nehru stadium here on Tursday.
Bairstow hits fifty as England collapse against Windies again
Jonny Bairstow was fighting a lone counter-attacking hand as the West Indies fast bowlers again ripped through the England top order with the visitors stumbling to 78 for four at lunch on the opening day of the second Test in Antigua on Thursday. Put in on a green pitch at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium which challenged the batsmen through pace and variable bounce, Alzarri Joseph took two wickets while Kemar Roach and Jason Holder claimed the others to justify Holder's decision to bowl first on winning the toss. Pummelled by 381 runs in the first Test a week earlier in Barbados when they were routed by the four-pronged pace attack for 77 in the first innings before the spin of Roston Chase demolished them second time round, England were swiftly forced onto the back foot again with only Bairstow, who blazed his way to an unbeaten 52 off 62 balls with nine fours and one six, offering anything resembling substantial defiance. The hosts will wrap up a rare Test series victory with a win .
Churchill and Real Kashmir play out hard-fought draw 1-1
A win for either Churchill Brothers or Real Kashmir FC would have taken them on the top of the 12th edition of the I-League table, but with a hard-fought 1-1 draw at the Tilak Maidan in Vasco Da Gama on Thursday both the teams remain where they were at the beginning of the game - in second and third spots respectively.All the goals came in the second half of the game. Farhan Ganie put the Kashmir ahead in the 55th minute while the league's top scorer Willis Plaza got the equaliser in the 69th minute for Churchill.The hosts Churchill did finish the stronger of the two teams as the visitors were clearly hampered by the absence of the physical presence of Ivorian striker Gnohre Krizo upfront. In the end, however, the game finished in a deadlock.Churchill's Romanian coach Petre Gigiu made three changes to his starting line-up - playing Khalid Aucho, Richard Costa and Wayne Vaz in place of Israil Gurung, Nickson Castanha and Nenad Novakovic. The last named was forced out due to ...
Dottin helps Windies take early lead in T20I series against Pak
West Indies all-rounder Deandra Dottin blazed an unbeaten 90 off 60 balls, which helped her side to a convincing 71-run win in the first T20I against Pakistan Women in Karachi on Thursday.The visitors won the toss and elected to bat. Dottin along with Kycia Knight got their side to a good start, scoring 34 runs under four overs before Knight was caught by Aiman Anwar off Nashra Sandhu for eight.The big-hitting Dottin continued her attack, taking West Indies past 50 before Shemaine Campbelle was run out on four. Chedean Nation, who smashed her maiden T20I half-century off 35 balls, and Dottin then went onto stitch an unbroken 109-run stand to post 160/2.Chasing a competitive target, only two Pakistan batswomen Javeria Khan (19) and Bismah Maroof (38) reached double digit as West Indies' Shamilia Connell (3/29) and Shakera Selman (2/8) dismantled the top-order of hosts before Anisa Mohammed, Afy Fletcher and Dottin finished the remaining work and bowled out Pakistan for 89 in 18 ...
Haryana beat defending champions Punjab Royals to lift PWL 4 title
Haryana Hammers won the fourth edition of the Pro Wrestling League (PWL) as they outclassed Punjab Royals 6-3 in the summit clash at the Gautam Buddha University indoor stadium here on Thursday.
Delhi Dynamos heap more misery on Kerala Blasters
Delhi Dynamos beat Kerala Blasters 2-0 in a match between I-League laggard teams at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium here Thursday. A period of sustained pressure in the first half helped the home side take the lead through Gianni Zuiverloon (29th minute). They added another goal when Rene Mihelic converted a penalty (90+4) to seal their second win of the season. The three points helped Delhi Dynamos climb above Kerala Blasters to the eighth spot in the ISL standings, courtesy of a head-to-head advantage. Josep Gombau's team has 10 points from 13 matches and Kerala have the same tally, having played a game more. Also, Kerala are now winless in 13 matches in the ISL. Delhi's new signing Ulises Davila announced his arrival in the 15th minute. The Mexican forward made room for a shot at the edge of the box with a fine touch before dispatching an attempt that went wide. The home side asserted themselves in the game as the minutes went by. Davila's movement troubled the Kerala centre-backs ...