Page 749 - Sports
Bumrah's unconventional action is hard to pick, makes him a potent bowler: Arun
India's bowling coach Bharat Arun Saturday said that Jasprit Bumrah's unconventional bowling action has made him one of the most lethal pacers in world cricket as his deliveries are difficult to be picked by opposition batsmen. Bumrah, who has so far taken eight wickets in the third Test against Australia here, has 47 Test wickets to his kitty after making his debut in January. "What makes him (Bumrah) so special is because he is so unique (in his bowling action). Maybe the batsmen pick up his balls a little later than which they normally do from a clean action and that makes him so much more potent. Of course, for any fast bowler to be bowling 145 clicks and above consistently over a period of time, you need to generate a lot of speed from your arms," Arun said. "We were extremely confident of Bumrah doing well even before he started playing Tests because he was unique and most batsmen who played against him said it was difficult to pick him," he said at the post-match conference ...
Shooting: R R Lakshya Cup 2018 on Dec 31
The 10th R R Lakshya Cup, an international shooting competition, will be held at Karnala in neighbouring Panvel on December 31 where top shooters from across the nation will take part in the mixed event. The tournament is organised by Lakshya Shooting Club, founded by former ace shooter Suma Shirur. Shirur said there will be two categories seniors and juniors. "Earlier, the competition was held only for the club members. But this is the third year, when we have made the tournament an open one. Now shooters from outside also compete in the competition, which will be held in 60 shot format only for Air Rifle category," informed Suma at a media briefing here on Saturday. According to Suma, the organisers have so far received 38 confirmed entries for the event, where former Indian shooting team coach Prof Sunny Thomas will be the chief guest. The organisers announced that some of the participants are Ravi Kumar, Deepak Kumar, who clinched a silver medal in the 2018 Asian ...
Bancroft gets BBL call post expiry of ball-tampering suspension
Australian pacer Cameron Bancroft's nine months suspension for his role in the massive ball-tampering scandal in a test series against South Africa came to an end on Saturday. Following the expiry of the ban term, the 26-year-old was named in the Perth Scorchers squad of their upcoming match against Hobart Hurricanes in the ongoing eighth edition of the Big Bash League (BBL).Bancroft took to his Instagram account and remembered the "troubled times" that he had over the past nine months. Thanking all the supporters for being with him, the pacer wrote that he is grateful for where he is and the kind of person he is growing up to be.Interestingly, the yoga teacher ended the post with "Namaste.""What a journey this has been over the last 9 months. For me, in what seemed like troubled times in April can remember lying in bed feeling for something. Some inspiration and motivation to get me out of bed. After thinking, reading, wondering and living it came to me that I had a choice. To lay in
Melbourne Test: India two wickets away from victory, Australia 258/8 at Stumps
India need two more wickets to register a win against Australia in the third Test of the ongoing four-match series here at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on Saturday. Chasing a mammoth total of 399 runs, Australia could only manage 258 runs at the loss of eight wickets by Stumps of Day Four of the match.India were on top of the Australian side right from the start of the hosts' second innings. Second over in the last innings of the match and Australian opener Aaron Finch (3) was walking back to the pavillion. Indian pacer Jasprit Bumrah bowled a shorter delivery to Finch who tried cutting it over the cordon but handed over a simple catch to skipper Virat Kohli in the second slip.Another Australian opener Marcus Harris, who was looking good on the crease, did not last long either as he was trapped by Jadeja at the score of 33 runs. With two of the Australian top-order batsmen out of the field, in form batsman, Usman Khawaja and Shaun Marsh were at the helm of the team's innings.Both the .
A day after meek surrender, Lyon backs Australian batsmen
A sympathetic Nathan Lyon is not too worried about the Australian batsmen's abject first-innings surrender in the third Test against India, saying "success for them is around the corner". The hosts were placed at 258 for eight Saturday, chasing 399, and are two wickets away from conceding a 2-1 series lead to the visitors. "I see how much hard work the guys are doing in the nets and in training. We know they are working hard and not going out to fail. They have all my support," Lyon said at the end of fourth day's play. "We are up against a world-class bowling attack, one of the best Indian attacks I have ever seen. They are disappointed but I know how hard they are working. Success for them is around the corner." In reply to India's first-innings total of 443 for seven declared, the hosts were bowled out for 151. "I am a massive fan of Aaron Finch. He is working hard and seeing a lot of balls in nets. We have seen him in international cricket in all three formats as a world-class ...
Bancroft ban expires and back in Perth Scorchers squad
Cameron Bancroft's ban for ball-tampering expired Saturday and he was immediately rushed into the Perth Scorchers squad for their Big Bash League clash with the Hobart Hurricanes. The 26-year-old opener was suspended from international and state cricket for nine months after attempting to alter the ball in a Test against South Africa in March. Then-Australian captain Steve Smith and his deputy David Warner were exiled for a year with their suspensions due to run out in late March. "What a journey this has been over the last nine months," Bancroft wrote on Instagram. "Grateful of where I am and the person I continue to grow to be. Thank you to every person, group, team and community I have come across over the last nine months. You know who you are." Bancroft re-emerged into public life with an explosive television interview on Wednesday in which he confirmed Warner asked him to use sandpaper to rough up the ball. He claimed he went along with it "to fit in" and because he "didn't know
New Zealand eye victory as Wagner rocks Sri Lanka
New Zealand were eyeing an historic victory as injury and a barrage of Neil Wagner bouncers left Sri Lanka in tatters at the close of day four of the second Test in Christchurch on Saturday. The conditions were tailor-made for short-ball specialist Wagner, New Zealand bowling coach Shane Jurgensen said, as Sri Lanka were 231 for six at stumps. At most they have only four wickets left, but with doubt whether the injured Angelo Mathews will return to help them survive the final day. At the crease were Dilruwan Perera on 22 and Suranga Lakmal on 16 with their 660-run target out of sight. Wagner, who had little success earlier in the series, broke through stubborn Sri Lankan resistance, with figures of three for 47 from a marathon 28 overs. "I think he showed what he could do once he had a little bit more bounce on offer. I thought he bowled with really good pace and really questioned the Sri Lankan batsmen," Jurgensen said. "I was commenting in our viewing area saying I think this day is
New Australian Open heat policy to counter oven-like conditions
A new extreme heat policy that dictates when it is safe to play will be introduced at next month's Australian Open to better deal with frequent oven-like conditions on court. The "Heat Stress Scale" will be used for the first time at a Grand Slam to help prevent players from fainting and suffering exhaustion, relying on more weather-measuring devices at Melbourne Park. Organisers said it followed "cutting-edge research and testing into the specific effects of heat stress on tennis players". New rules will allow for a 10-minute break between the second and third sets in women's singles matches when a four -- on a scale of one to five --- is recorded on the HSS prior to or during the first two sets of a match. Men will get a 10-minute breather after the third set if a four is reached. If the heat stress scale goes to five, play can be suspended. Tennis Australia chief medical officer Carolyn Broderick said the scale took into account the effects of heat on the human body including the .
China to punish athletic doping as criminal offence: state media
Chinese athletes who use performance-enhancing drugs will receive criminal punishments and jail terms from next year, as China cracks down on doping ahead of the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics, state media reported. China's sports administration and top judicial authority are drafting rules that would apply criminal law to doping cases, official news agency Xinhua said Friday. Citing remarks made at a Friday meeting by Gou Zhongwen, director of China's sports administration, Xinhua said that the new anti-doping punishments will be put into effect "probably in early 2019". "It is our will to show the world we are really serious about anti-doping, and are taking concrete measures on fight against doping," Gou said. China's sports administration told AFP it could not confirm Xinhua's report. Doping scandals have riddled China's international sporting record in the past decade, with some athletes stripped of Olympic gold medals. In January 2017, three Chinese women's weightlifting gold ...
3rd Test: Gritty Cummins' keeps India at bay on Day 4 (Roundup)
Pacer Pat Cummins doubled up his career-best bowling effort with a stubborn unbeaten half-century to help Australia reach 258/8 and deny India an easy win at stumps on Day 4 of the third Test here on Saturday.
Methods we use with Indian team are similar to Arsenal, Leicester: Deigan
Sports scientist Danny Deigan, who has played a crucial role behind raising the fitness levels of the Indian football team, says the methods followed are "very similar" to the ones in leading clubs such as Arsenal. "After visiting a number of EPL clubs including Arsenal, Tottenham Hotspur and Leicester City, I can say that the methods that we use in the Indian team are very similar to them," Deigan stated. "It's important to take note of the output against the top teams in Asia so that we can replicate them, and even do better in the upcoming Asian Cup," he added said during India's ongoing preparatory camp for the forthcoming continental showpiece. It was Stephen Constantine who had suggested that "we need our players in the best of their shapes to run for 90 minutes". "If you can't run, you can't fight on the pitch. The effect of the tests and the results have been great for us. The credit goes to Danny's effort in the past three years, and Joel Carter since earlier this year to ...
Individual choices on Ranji Trophy participation shouldn't be criticised: Dhoni
Former Indian skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni believes that players opting not to participate in the Ranji Trophy should not be criticised for their "individual preferences".He said that it is important for the cricketers to safeguard themselves keeping in sight the packed cricketing calendar.The 37-year-old further opined that it is important to make domestic circuit less challenging, adding that one should not be too critical of the T20 cricket."It is important to safeguard players. We have to make the domestic circuit slightly less challenging [in terms of the itinerary] for the individual. Moreover, it is important to be not too critical of T20 cricket and also individual preferences. Individual preferences should not be criticised," ESPNcricinfo quoted Dhoni, as saying.The comment comes in the backdrop of a number of players skipping the Ranji Trophy season despite not playing for the national side in international matches. Indian opening batsman Shikhar Dhawan was dropped from ...
India close in on win as Australia reach 258/8 at stumps
India came within sniffing distance of a defining victory before a stoic resistance by Australia's tail delayed the inevitable in the third Test here Saturday. Pat Cummins scored a heroic half-century as Australia finished at 258 for eight at stumps on day four after being reduced to 176 for seven after tea. At end of play, he had scored an unbeaten 61 runs, facing 103 balls and hitting five fours as well as a six, while Nathan Lyon was batting on 6, as they put on 43 runs for the ninth wicket. Australia need another 141 runs for an improbable win, while India are two wickets away from a 2-1 series lead. Post tea, Travis Head (34) and Tim Paine (26) took their sixth-wicket partnership to 22 runs. The duo cut down on risky scoring shots and played for time. But they couldn't last long, as Head played on off Ishant Sharma (1-37) in the 51st over. Paine though continued his resistance and put on 19 runs with Mitchell Starc (18), seeing through 11 overs in this partnership. Ravindra ...
India on verge of victory in 3rd Test
India were on the brink of victory in the third cricket Test with Australia toterring at 258/8 in their second innings, still 141 runs shy of the target at the end of the fourth day here on Saturday.
Australia 258/8 at stumps, India need two wickets
Australia were 258 for eight at stumps on the fourth and penultimate day of the third Test against India here Saturday. Set an improbable target of 399 after India declared their second innings at 106 for eight, the visitors were behind by 141 runs at close of play, with Pat Cummins and Nathan Lyon batting on 61 and 6 respectively. Brief scores: India: 443/7 and 106/8 declared (Mayank Agarwal 42; Pat Cummins 6/27) Australia: 151 all out and 258/8 in 85 overs (Pat Cummins batting 61, Shaun Marsh 44; Ravindra jadeja 3/82, Jasprit Bumrah 2/53).
Asian Cup: Aim is to advance from group stage, says Constantine (IANS Interview)
Indian football coach Stephen Constantine believes the team can make it out of the group stages of the forthcoming Asian Cup, a tournament in which the country has time and again failed to shine.
A watershed year for Indian women shuttlers (2018 in Restrospect)
Indian badminton continued to move northwards in 2018, especially the women's singles players -- P.V. Sindhu and veteran Saina Nehwal -- as they dished out one stunning performance after another.
Odisha aspiration to be India's sports hub crystallises (2018 In Retrospect)
The year 2018 was eventful for Odisha as it successfully put itself on the world sports map and as an emerging sports hub in India.
After mixed 2018 show, Indian hockey at crossroads (2018 in Restrospect)
Familiar failures in major tournaments after promising build-ups and musical chair-like rotation of coaches. These were the major highlights of Indian hockey in 2018.
Ranji Trophy: Mumbai take on Vidarbha in 'must win' game
Mumbai face a daunting task when they take on Ranji Trophy champions Vidarbha here from Saturday in a 'must-win' Elite Group A game. Forty one time champions Mumbai's chances to qualify for the quarter-finals depend on the result as they need an outright win to stay on course. Mumbai are languishing at the 14th spot in the combined Groups A and B standings with 11 points from six games. They have played six games this season but haven't been able to win a single match. But the domestic giants will be bolstered by the return of their two key pacers -- Shardul Thakur and Tushar Deshpande -- for the game against the reigning champions. Mumbai batsmen will also need to step up and deliver for their side and for skipper Siddhesh Lad, who has been in good form. Lad, who has slammed two hundreds (one each against Baroda and Saurashtra), will like to continue from where he left off in the last encounter. But he needs support of other batsmen -- Shreyas Iyer, Jay Bista, Vikrant ..