Page 616 - Sports
India to meet New Zealand and Bangladesh at World Cup warm-ups
India are scheduled to meet New Zealand and Bangladesh at the ICC Men's Cricket World Cup 2019 warm-up matches, beginning on May 24.Virat Kohli-led side, which is playing against New Zealand in the ongoing five-match ODI series, will meet the Kiwi side on May 25 at The Oval. Subsequently, India will clash with Bangladesh on May 28 at the Cardiff Wales Stadium.As per previous ICC tournaments, warm-ups will be 50 overs per side, but will not carry official ODI status, as teams can field all members of their 15-man squad during the match.Apart from India, other high-profile clashes include Pakistan versus Australia and Sri Lanka against South Africa on May 24 at the Bristol County Ground and the Cardiff Wales Stadium.England and Australia will lock horns on May 25 at the Hampshire Bowl. South Africa and West Indies, Pakistan and Bangladesh will meet on May 26 at the Bristol County Ground and the Cardiff Wales Stadium.Australia and Sri Lanka, England and Afghanistan will clash on May 27 ..
India face New Zealand, Bangladesh in ICC World Cup warm-up ties
As part of the preparations for the ICC World Cup, India will play New Zealand and Bangladesh in two official warm-up games on May 25 and 28 respectively at The Oval and Cardiff, the ICC announced on Thursday.
Feel like a different bowler when it swings: Trent Boult
After his carnage with the ball helped New Zealand outsmart India by eight wickets in the fourth One Day International (ODI) match here on Thursday, pacer Trent Boult said he was just trying to make full use of the conditions.
Spain's top football league planning friendly match in India: country head
Spain's Premier Division clubs may play friendly matches in India in the near future, the widely followed league's India head Jose Cachaza said Thursday. "We are planning to hold a friendly match involving La Liga clubs in India, but I cannot say when it will be held. We did hold matches last year," Cachaza told reporters here. "There is huge money involved in holding such a match and we need participation of local promoters for doing it. This is one reason. The other reason is, the players get some time at the end of season, say in June, but it is difficult to think of players keen on playing a friendly," he said. Cachaza said La Liga has informal relationships with at least six Indian Super League sides. "We are having good relations with at least six ISL teams. We are helping them to visit Spain for pre-season matches. Our intention is to help them improve football in India," he said. "We do not want to have a formalised relationship with any football club because each club has ...
Akashdeep's twin strike helps Punjab beat Mumbai 4-0 in Hockey Senior Nationals
India's star striker Akashdeep Singh struck twice to guide Hockey Punjab to a comfortable 4-0 win over Mumbai Hockey Association Ltd in the 9th Senior National Hockey Championship (Men) A Division here Thursday. It was Rupinderpal Singh who opened the scoring for Hockey Punjab in the 17th minute, while Sukhdev Singh scored in the 53rd minute to extend the lead to two goals. Akashdeep then scored in the 58th and 60th minutes to complete the 4-0 drubbing. Among others, Railway Sports Promotion Board, Association of Indian Universities, Uttar Pradesh Hockey, Petroleum Sports Promotion Board, Air India Sports Promotion Board and Hockey Odisha registered victories in their respective opening matches of the competition. In a Pool A match, it was Association of Indian Universities who registered a hard-fought 2-1 win over Hockey Chandigarh. Raushan Kumar (23') and Manjinder Singh (49') scored the two goals for Association of Indian Universities, while it was Sanjay who scored Hockey ...
West Indies women win 1st match in Pakistan without problems
The West Indies women's first cricket match in Pakistan was a 71-run victory that passed without incident on Thursday. Pakistan has staged only short limited-overs series against Zimbabwe, Sri Lanka, a World XI, and the West Indies since a deadly terrorist attack in March 2009 against the Sri Lanka test team in Lahore. A women's team from Bangladesh also toured Pakistan in October 2015. The West Indies women, making their first appearance in Pakistan in 15 years, agreed to play three Twenty20s there before both teams fly to Dubai, United Arab Emirates, for three one-day internationals. Opener Deandra Dottin top-scored for the West Indies with 90 in a total of 160-2, then Pakistan, playing its 100th T20, was bowled out for 89 in 18 overs. Medium fast bowlers Shamilia Connell (3-29) and Shakera Selman (2-8) led the way. The next T20s are on Friday and Sunday, all in Karachi. West Indies captain Stefanie Taylor will join the team in Dubai as she didn't come to Pakistan due to security ...
Spanish league head wants to block Al-Khelaifi from UEFA
The head of the Spanish league has called on members at the upcoming UEFA Congress to block Paris Saint-Germain chairman Nasser Al-Khelaifi from taking a seat on European soccer's top decision-making body. Al-Khelaifi has been elected by the European Club Association board to be one of its two delegates on the UEFA executive committee. UEFA's 55 member nations still have to ratify the Qatari's appointment next week at its congress in Rome. But Spanish league president Javier Tebas said in a statement to The Associated Press that Al-Khelaifi's "appointment must be rejected as it violates all reasonable rules of governance, not only because of the Financial Fair Play file, also because he is president of beIN Sport, one of main UEFA broadcast rights buyers." PSG's compliance with FFP rules is under fresh scrutiny by UEFA, with Tebas having long-standing concerns about the Qatar-owned club's reliance on revenue from the Gulf state to comply with the break-even rules.
Ashwin can be considered for World Cup squad: Gambhir
Former India opener Gautam Gambhir on Thursday backed ODI discard off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin's inclusion in the ICC World Cup squad, saying the tweaker's experience will come in handy in the showpiece tournament, slated to be held from May 30 in England and Wales.
Davis Cup: India fancy chances against formidable Italy in qualifier (Lead Preview)
India will strive to make the most of home conditions, a favourable surface and format to battle history and former champions Italy in a Davis Cup World Group qualifiers tie here from Friday.
Real Kashmir vs Churchill Brothers match ends 1-1 draw
Real Kashmir FC played out a 1-1 draw with Churchill Brothers of Goa in their 15th round I-League match to remain in contention for the title here on Thursday. Farhan Ganie gave Real Kashmir the lead in the 55th minute but the league's top-scorer Willis Plaza -- with 16 strikes so far -- equalised for Churchill in the 70th minute as the two sides grabbed a point apiece from the match. The draw, however, extended Real Kashmir's unbeaten run to 11 matches. The first leg match had also ended in a draw (0-0) in Srinagar in November last year. With Thursday's draw, both Real Kashmir and Churchill Brothers are on joint second in the I-League table with 29 points from 15 matches. Chennai City FC, whom Real Kashmir had beaten twice this season, are leading the table with 30 points from 14 matches. A total of 20 matches will be played by each team.
Former champions Minerva Punjab and Aizawl FC face off in battle for pride
Out of title contention, defending champions Minerva Punjab will like to put their best foot forward against Aizawl FC in an I-League encounter on Friday. Minerva are going through a lacklustre season and are currently placed seventh on the points table with 14 points from as many games. Their Friday opponents are languishing in the relegation zone, lying in 10th place with 11 points from 14 games. The homeside's main concern has been scoring goals, with two of the meagre seven that they have scored so far coming in the first leg win against their Friday visitors two-and-a-half months back. Northern-Irish coach Paul Munster has experimented with as many as six strikers in the course of the league but none of them have yielded the desired results as they look forward to an AFC Champions League campaign. Speaking at the media conference on match day eve, Munster said: "The mood has been very good since we have been bringing in the new players. It also increases the level of the players .
I-League: Neroca up against Indian Arrows in must-win game
Neroca will be aiming to come out all guns blazing against Indian Arrows in a must-win encounter on Friday which will keep their hopes alive of a second-place finish in the ongoing I-League. Neroca have 22 points from 14 games so far and eight behind leaders Chennai City and cannot afford any more slip-ups in this business end of India's top-flight football league. The Arrows, on the other hand, are lying eighth on the table with 13 points from 14 games and have already bested their debut 11th Hero I-League season's record of three wins. They will fancy their chances at home, given Neroca have faltered in their last three outings, losing two and drawing one. Neroca's Spanish coach Manuel Fraile will have to inspire his players after failing to put it across Aizawl at home last week as the Arrows are an ever-dangerous side and good enough to take advantage of any opponents not at their best. He sounded positive in the pre-game press chat though, sharing:"The preparation is coming good.
Mary Kom on doping: Some coaches lead their wards the wrong way
Celebrated Indian boxer M C Mary Kom Thursday said some coaches are to be blamed for the ever-prevalent doping menace in the country as they lead the athletes the "wrong way". The 2012 Olympic bronze-medallist and six-time world champion advocated bringing coaches into the ambit of anti-doping awareness training imparted by the national watchdog, the NADA. "We need to teach the coaches also. They will also have to be made aware, given training about the prohibited substances," the 36-year-old six-time world champion said at the closing ceremony of the National Conference on Anti-Doping. "Unfortunately, some coaches take their wards the wrong way. They take them to a different way," she said in the presence of sports minister Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore. Coaches being hand-in-gloves with athletes in usage of banned substances to win medals and later financial rewards from the government is well known in Indian sports but few have aired their views in public. "Some athletes want ...
Bengaluru ropes in Luisma, Chencho moves to NEROCA
Indian Super League leaders Bengaluru FC Thursday roped in attacking Spanish midfielder Luis Manuel Villa after Bhutan's Chencho Gyeltshen completed his loan move to I-League club NEROCA FC for remainder of the season. Bengaluru FC signed Luis Manuel Villa, popularly known as Luisma, till the end of 2018-19 campaign. Luisma is a product of the Racing Santander youth setup. He made several appearances with the Santander B side before making his La Liga debut with the Green and White in 2007. After playing for Segunda Division B sides, Luisma represented Real Union and Deportivo Alaves, among other clubs. "I am very happy to have signed for Bengaluru FC, and I can't wait to start playing for the club. I am eager to meet my new teammates and to play my part in the rest of the season. I know BFC is a club that wins trophies and I want to help them do that," he said. In 2013, Luisma made his move to England and scored 17 goals in two seasons playing for Conference Premier side Barnet. He ..
India well-behaved team: ICC CEO's response to queries on Pandya sexist row
International Cricket Council CEO David Richardson Thursday described Indian captain Virat Kohli as a great ambassador for the game and the Indian team a "well-behaved" one after queries came his way on Hardik Pandya's sexist comments on a TV show. Richardson, who was here for a World Cup-related promotional event, was inexplicably asked questions on Pandya's loose talk on women in a TV show that led to a suspension, which has been lifted pending an inquiry for now. "That's the issue for the member country to worry about and generally the Indian team is a well behaved team. They come to matches and accept the umpire's decision. They play in the right spirit," said Richardson. "They perform very well and Virat Kohli is the great ambassador for the game. He talks passionately not about T20 cricket but Test cricket and 50-over cricket and I think all the good players want to play all formats of the game," he added. A question was also thrown at him about India's handling of the Pandya ...
Davis Cup: Happy to see Indian team not fighting, says Naresh Kumar
Indian tennis great Naresh Kumar on Thursday expressed satisfaction on seeing the Indian team "happy" and together without any "infighting" as they get ready to take on former champions Italy in their Davis Cup World Group Qualifier from Friday.
China's Xi: 2022 Winter Games will be green, inclusive, open
Chinese President Xi Jinping says his country is well on track to deliver a "spectacular" 2022 Winter Olympic Games. China's government was firmly committed to staging the games with a "green, inclusive, open, and corruption-free approach," Xi told IOC President Thomas Bach on Thursday. "We will deliver a spectacular games," Xi said in opening remarks at their meeting at the Great Hall of the People in central Beijing. Xi said China's preparations grew out of its people's approach to performing jobs in a "methodical matter and well in advance." In response, Bach said his delegation had been impressed with their visits to the Olympic venues, winter sports training grounds, and the winter ice festival in the northeastern city of Harbin. "And we had a great experience about the dynamism and efficiency of China in the preparation for these Olympics," Bach said. Beijing received the games by attrition, winning over Almaty, Kazakhstan, after a half-dozen European bidders dropped out, ...
NEROCA up against Indian Arrows in must-win I-League game
Manipur-based side NEROCA FC will hope to snap their winless streak and stay in the top four race when they take on Indian Arrows in a return leg 12th Hero I-League fixture here Friday. NEROCA, who had secured a second place in their debut season last year, have 22 points from 14 games so far, eight behind leaders Chennai City and cannot afford any more slip-ups in this business end of India's top-flight football league. The Arrow, on the other hand, are lying eighth on the table with 13 points from 14 games and have already bested their debut 11th Hero I-League season's record of three wins. They will fancy their chances at the Kalinga Stadium, given NEROCA have faltered in their last three outings, losing two and drawing one. The Arrows are an ever-dangerous side and good enough to take advantage of any opponents and NEROCA's Spanish coach Manuel Fraile will have to inspire his players after failing to put it across Aizawl at home last week. "The preparation is coming good. We are ..
South Africa vice-captain Chloe Tryon ruled out of Sri Lanka T20Is
South Africa women vice-captain Chloe Tryon has been ruled out of the three-match T20I series against Sri Lanka Women due to recurrence of a groin injury.The 25-year-old, however, is expected to return for the ODI series, which will be part of the ICC Women's Championship.Replacing the big-hitting player, all-rounder Sune Luus, who had been left out of the initial squad after a poor performance, will return to the side.South Africa women, ranked at number six on the ICC T20I team rankings, and Sri Lanka women, placed at number eight, will play the T20Is beginning on February 1 at Cape Town as double-headers with the men's team matches between South Africa and Pakistan.
Extremely difficult to pick a winner in 2019 World Cup: ICC CEO
The ICC World Cup in England and Wales is hardly five months away and the mind games and predictions have already begun, with the ICC CEO David Richardson on Thursday saying it is very difficult to pick a clear winner even as he backed India and England for leading the race.