Page 836 - Sports
Manchester City top World Cup player pay-out table
Manchester City received more money from FIFA than any other club from their players' participation at the 2018 World Cup, the European Club Association (ECA) said on Tuesday. World football's governing body gave the Premier League champions just over USD 5 million (4.4 million euros) in reference to their 16 players selected for their national team for the tournament and the number of days each individual was in Russia. Champions League winners Real Madrid earned USD 4.8m and Chelsea and Manchester United both gained more than USD 3.6m. Elsewhere in Europe, Paris Saint-Germain received USD 3.9 m for their 12 players, Serie A champions Juventus USD 3m and Bundesliga title holders Bayern Munich USD 2.7m. The competition organisers paid USD 209m to a total of 416 clubs worldwide.
Kenya's Kipchoge, Colombian Ibarguen scoop IAAF awards
Kenyan marathon master Eliud Kipchoge and Colombian jumper Caterine Ibarguen won the IAAF men and women's 2018 awards on Tuesday. Kipchoge set a new marathon world record in Berlin in September, smashing the previous best by an incredible 78 seconds as he clocked 2hr 1min 39sec. The 34-year-old Olympic champion's effort was the largest single improvement on the marathon world record since Derek Clayton improved the mark by 2:23 in 1967. Acclaimed as the greatest marathon runner of the modern era, Kipchoge has dominated marathon racing since making his debut in Hamburg in 2013 after a successful track career that saw him win world gold and silver (2003, 2007) in the 5000m and Olympic silver and bronze (2008, 2004) over the same distance. He has notched up 10 wins from the 11 marathons he has raced, winning three times not only in Berlin but also London, with victories in Rio for Olympic gold as well as in Hamburg, Rotterdam and Chicago. Ibarguen, also 34, won both horizontal jumps at ..
Players are not sabotaging my efforts: Mourinho
Jose Mourinho insists his Manchester United players are giving their maximum effort despite repeated criticism by him of their performances. The 55-year-old United manager claimed any accusation his players were underperforming because they did not like him would be "dishonest". Mourinho has been withering in his assessment of United's performances in their past two league matches, saying his players lacked "heart" after they were held 0-0 at home by Crystal Palace on November 24. He then suggested there were not enough "mad dogs" in his team following last Saturday's 2-2 draw at Southampton. None of United's players spoke to the media after the match at St Mary's Stadium. Yet there have been reports of dressing room disharmony, with Mourinho reportedly comparing France midfielder Paul Pogba to a "virus" in an angry rant at Southampton. Mourinho has declined to comment on the latest reports of a fall-out with Pogba, and would not even by drawn on whether he thought the midfielder had .
Man City withstand late Watford onslaught to move five points clear
Manchester City opened up a five-point lead at the top of the table with a seventh straight Premier League victory, but were made to work for a 2-1 win at Watford on Tuesday. City's goals came either side of half-time as Leroy Sane chested home to end Watford's resistance before Riyad Mahrez swept home early in the second period. However, they had to withstand a nervy finish after Abdoulaye Doucoure bundled home five minutes from time. Pep Guardiola made six changes to his starting line-up despite also missing Sergio Aguero and Kevin De Bruyne through injury. Yet, City were still far too strong for the dogged hosts, who had goalkeeper Ben Foster to thank for the visitors not racking up the 5-0 and 6-0 thrashings they did on their two previous visits to Vicarage Road. Guardiola changed his entire back four from Saturday's 3-1 win over Bournemouth and left the in-form Raheem Sterling on the bench for the full 90 minutes. Mahrez came in for the England international and the luxury of ...
Falcao penalties lift Monaco out of relegation zone
Radamel Falcao scored a pair of penalties as Thierry Henry's Monaco won 2-0 at fellow strugglers Amiens to climb out of the bottom three in Ligue 1 on Tuesday. The Colombian had missed twice from the spot this season but calmly converted on 43 minutes at the Stade de la Licorne after Emil Krafth upended Benoit Badiashile. Amiens defender Bakaye Dibassy was sent off for catching the Monaco captain with a raised boot in the 90th minute, and Falcao wrapped up a second victory in three games with another penalty deep into stoppage time. Henry said he wasn't getting too carried away with his team's victory. "From our side of things in terms of how we played it wasn't extraordinary but we held on. Fortunately Falcao was there when we needed him," Henry said. "We must not overreact, we need to continue to work and use the positive aspects of each match to inspire us," he added. The result provisionally bumped Henry's side up to 17th place above Dijon and Amiens on goal difference, ...
Ind vs Aus: Hanuma Vihari gets call for Adelaide Test
Indian batting all-rounder Hanuma Vihari has been included in the 12-member squad announced by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) for the first Test against Australia, beginning December 6.The 25-year-old had made his Test debut against England at Kennington Oval in September, this year, scoring 56 runs and scalping three wickets in the match with an impressive economy rate of 3.62.Vihari is likely to be in competition with right-hand batsman Rohit Sharma to get a spot in the playing eleven. Sharma played his last Test in January 2018 against South Africa scoring 10 and 47 runs in the two innings of the match.India have rested their hopes on the likes of Virat Kohli, KL Rahul, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane and Murali Vijay to tackle the Australian pacers on the bouncy tracks.In the bowling department, India have opted for three specialist pacers Mohammed Shami, Ishant Sharma and Jasprit Bumrah while Ravichandran Ashwin will be at the helm of the spin attack.India ...
Mohammad Hafeez to retire after Abu Dhabi Test against Kiwis
Pakistan all-rounder Mohammad Hafeez will bid adieu to the Test cricket after their ongoing third and last match against New Zealand at Abu Dhabi.The 38-year-old reasoned that he wants to focus more on the limited-over format especially the 2019 cricket World Cup."Today, I want to announce my retirement from the Test-match format so that I can focus my energies on playing for Pakistan in the white-ball formats. I am eyeing to represent Pakistan in the ICC World Cup next year. I feel honoured that I represented the country in 55 Test matches, including the opportunity of captaining the team. I feel satisfied that I performed to the best of my abilities in my 15 year-long Test career," ESPNcricinfo quoted Hafeez, as saying."I wish the Test team the very best for their upcoming assignments starting with the tour to South Africa, the team management especially the coach and captain have worked very hard in forming an exciting core of players that can serve for long," he added.Pakistan ...
WWE trials in India an amazing opportunity: Matt Hardy
World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) superstar Matt Hardy, who is on a promotional tour to India, opined that the first-ever WWE trials, slated to be held in March next year, is a great opportunity for Indian athletes to break into the wrestling entertainment universe.Speaking to ANI, the six-time Tag Team champion said, "It's an amazing opportunity for aspiring WWE superstars in India for sure. If you're an athlete, Olympians or other professional athletes, so many people can make that transition over to WWE, this is a great opportunity to take advantage of."Hardy further stated that he and his brother Jeff; who together formed the iconic 'The Hardy Boyz' tag team during the Attitude Era; never got a platform as such to catch the eye of the WWE."When my brother and I were trying to get into wrestling, we never got an opportunity like this. We had to drive all over the country, really struggle, and scratch and call to get in front of someone to hopefully get an eyeball from WWE on us. .
ISL: Jamshedpur hold profligate Kerala to 1-1 draw
A maiden home win continued to elude a wasteful Kerala Blasters FC as they were held to a 1-1 draw by Jamshedpur FC in a Indian Super League encounter at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium here on Tuesday.
Gambhir retires from all forms of cricket
India discard Gautam Gambhir on Tuesday announced his retirement from all forms of cricket. The Ranji Trophy game between Delhi and Andhra starting on Thursday at the Feroz Shah Kotla here will be his last game.
ISL: Kerala Blasters play 1-1 draw with Jamshedpur
A maiden home win continued to elude a wasteful Kerala Blasters FC as they were held to a 1-1 draw by Jamshedpur FC in an Indian Super League encounter at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium here on Tuesday.
PKL: Gujarat hammer Patna to book play-off berth
Gujarat Fortunegiants became the second team after U Mumba to qualify for the playoffs of Pro Kabaddi League (PKL) season six after hammering Patna Pirates 45-27 in an inter-zone challenge contest at the Thyagraj stadium here on Tuesday.
Qatar World Cup games could start at 1000 GMT
World Cup matches in Qatar could kick-off as early as 1000 GMT if it holds four games a day during the 2022 tournament group stage, organisers confirmed Tuesday. The other three games would start at 1300, 1600 and 1900 GMT, Nasser al-Khater, assistant secretary general for the World Cup organising body the Supreme Committee for Delivery & Legacy, told local broadcaster, Qatar Television. "There's a proposition to hold four matches a day, one at 1300, 1600, 1900, and 2200 Doha time. This will be finalised with FIFA," he said. "We are currently planning for three matches per day, but also considering four a day as the weather and temperature will be good, and also all stadiums enjoying air conditioning." Qatar's World Cup has an extra time pressure as it will be squeezed into 28 days, rather the usual 32 days, following its switch to November and December 2022 from the traditional months of June and July. That pressure could increase further, as FIFA is looking into increasing the ..
Profligate Kerala Blasters play out 1-1 draw against Jamshedpur FC
A maiden home win continued to elude a wasteful Kerala Blasters FC as they were held to a 1-1 draw by Jamshedpur FC in an Indian Super League encounter at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium here Tuesday. Carlos Calvo put Jamshedpur ahead from the spot in the 66th minute before Seiminlen Doungel's equaliser in the 77th minute ensured the spoils were shared by the two teams. Both coaches made three changes each to their line-ups with Kerala Blasters head coach David James reinstating Slavisa Stojanovic in the starting eleven after he recovered in time from an injury while Cesar Ferrando handed Tim Cahill a start up front. Stojanovic should have done better in the seventh minute after receiving an excellent through ball from Sahal Samad but the Serbian blasted his effort wide. The visitors were dealt an early blow with Michael Soosairaj having to leave the pitch with a hamstring injury. Things could have gone even worse for Jamshedpur minutes later when Mario Arques lost the ball to Keziron ...
Gautam Gambhir bids emotional adieu to cricket
Former Indian opener Gautam Gambhir on Tuesday announced his retirement from all formats of cricket, calling it the most difficult decision taken with the heaviest of hearts.The 37-year-old left-hander took to Twitter and wrote: "The most difficult decisions are often taken with the heaviest of hearts. And with one heavy heart, I've decided to make an announcement that I've dreaded all my life.""After more than 15 years of cricket for my country, I want to retire from playing this beautiful game," Gambhir said in a video shared on his Facebook.Dubbing the thought of retirement as a sharp disturbing noise, Gambhir said : "Each time I got out to play for India or Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) or Delhi Daredevils (Delhi Capitals), this thought would turn into a sharp disturbing noise and walk with me all the way to dressing room shouting- It is over Gauti!""It slapped me hard when I got those three ducks in a row in 2014 IPL. Again, when I had a dreadful tour to England the same year. In
Copa del Rey match chance for second-string players: Atletico coach
Atletico Madrid coach Diego Pablo Simeone on Tuesday said that his side's upcoming second leg of the Copa del Rey match against Sant Andreu would be a good chance for players who do not normally appear on the pitch to get playing time.
Gujarat Fortunegiants thrash Patna Pirates 45-27 in PKL
Gujarat Fortunegiants registered a resounding 45-27 win over Patna Pirates in a Pro Kabaddi Season 6 match to become the second team to qualify for the play-offs. Parvesh Bhainswal produced a superb defensive show as he scored eight tackle points. Sachin and Prapanjan contributed nine raid points each to lead their team to victory. For Pardeep Narwal, it was a day to forget as he scored just one tackle point and that cost the defending champions Patna Pirates dear. Gujarat Fortunegiants made a strong start as they kept Pardeep Narwal quiet for the first five minutes and Sachin picked up a couple of raid points. After five minutes Gujarat led 7-2 and were threatening to run away with the match. A super tackle in the next minute gave Patna Pirates a lifeline as they trailed 4-7. Gujarat Fortunegiants inflicted an all out in eighth minute to open an eight-point lead of 13-5. It took Pardeep Narwal 10 minutes to open his account as Gujarat's defence had an excellent first half. Another ...
Hockey players shake a leg, share experiences at Fan Village in Odisha
The hockey players, who are showing their mesmerising skills on the ground in the Men's Hockey World Cup, entertained the fans with their dancing skills at Kalinga Stadium here on Tuesday.
Gautam Gambhir: Where courage triumphed over talent
Grit that forced people to take notice, commitment that earned kudos, plainspeak that raised eyebrows, Gautam Gambhir's eventful 15 years in Indian cricket were all these and many more. His cricketing epitaph was written when he was forced to (voluntarily for his fans) step down after six failures in IPL, and Tuesday's emotional video post was just an official closure on his part. But how does one judge cricketer Gambhir among the pantheons of greats in Indian cricket? He did not have the perfect technique that made Sunil Gavaskar the legend that he was. Neither did Gambhir possess the streak of genius that made Virender Sehwag one of Indian cricket's greatest entertainers. Yet, any Indian team between early 2008 till World Cup 2011 wasn't complete without the feisty left-hander from Rajinder Nagar in New Delhi. He was an incredible foil to Sehwag and despite his limited talent, the ICC Test batsman of the Year for 2009 could always punch above his weight. But somehow, he remained the
Gambhir retires, says noise of 'It's over Gauti' got to him finally
Veteran Indian opener Gautam Gambhir, who played a pivotal role in India's two World Cup triumphs, Tuesday announced retirement from cricket, saying the "irritable noise of 'It's over Gauti'" has triumphed over his will to continue. The 37-year-old, in a video message on his social media pages, said the Ranji Trophy game against Andhra Pradesh starting Thursday will be his last competitive match. The aggressive opener was India's top-scorer in the finals of the 2007 World T20 in South Africa and the 2011 ODI World Cup, both of which the country won. "The next Ranji Trophy game against Andhra will be my last day in the sun. It is coming to an end where it all started at the Feroz Shah Kotla ground," Gambhir said in the more than 11-minute long video post. Gambhir, one of the most successful batsmen for India, has been out of favour with the national team for a while now after a dip in form and last played a Test back in 2016 against England. "The thought has been with me day and night.