Page 843 - Sports
How newly formed Ankita-Karman partnership is clicking
The on-court "maturity" of Ankita Raina and the "observational" skills of Karman Kaur Thandi is making their newly-formed doubles partnership click, say India's top two singles players. Ankita and Karman first nailed their career's maiden WTA doubles title in Taipei before uniting to win the Pune Open last week, making it two trophies in a row. While the two players have not committed on how long they want to play together but if they are playing the same tournaments, there is no stopping this partnership. And given that they are ranked closer, just outside the 200s, there is a possibility of opting for same events. The results have come immediately after joining forces and they have deciphered a few things about each other, which they feel are yielding success. "In Taipei itself, we felt that combination and communication was at different level than what we had with other players. That is what is required to do well. When we lose a point, at that time communication is key," said ...
Sevilla loses La Liga lead spot in 1-1 draw against Alaves
Alaves and Sevilla battled to a 1-1 tie in the Mendizorroza stadium here, a draw that caused the Andalusians to lose their leadership spot in La Liga, with Barcelona supplanting them with its victory over Villarreal.
Halep to play in Sydney International
World number one Simona Halep is ready to play in the Sydney International, which will take place in January 2019, according to the organisers.
Arsenal prevails 4-2 over Tottenham in North London derby
Arsenal had to dig deep to rally from a 1-2 deficit to prevail over Tottenham Hotspur 4-2 in a thrilling North London derby here.
Origi shocks Everton with late goal, gives Liverpool 1-0 win
Belgian striker Divock Origi netted a last gasp 1-0 winner for Liverpool over visiting Everton in the Premier League Merseyside derby.
Atletico Madrid plays to 1-1 tie against Girona in La Liga
Visiting Atletico Madrid was given a late 1-1 equaliser on an own goal by Girona defender Jonas Ramalho, following the first-half 1-0 lead scored by Uruguayan striker Christian Stuani.
Barcelona down Villarreal 2-0
Barcelona blanked Villarreal 2-0 with goals from Gerard Pique and Carles Aleña.
India A-NZ A 3rd unofficial Test drawn after rain washes away final day
The third unofficial Test between India A and New Zealand A ended in a draw after the fourth and final day of the match was abandoned without a ball being bowled due to rain here. The honours were shared in the series as the previous two matches also ended in draws. R Samarth (27) and AR Bawne (5) were at the crease with India at 38-1 in their second innings on Sunday but the duo couldn't face a single delivery owing to incessant rain on Monday. On Sunday, Cam Fletcher's career-best 103 gave New Zealand A a 75-run first-innings lead, despite Krishanappa Gowtham's six-wicket haul. In reply to India's first innings total of 323, New Zealand A ended their innings at 398 in 131.4 overs with Gowtham returning with figures of 46.4-10-139-6 here. India A will now play three unofficial ODIs against New Zealand A starting December 7 at Mount Maunganui.
PSG captain unsure about severity of Neymar's injury
Paris Saint-Germain captain Thiago Silva has stated that he is not sure if the fresh injury concern of Brazilian striker and his team mate Neymar is serious or not.Neymar had sustained an injury during their Ligue 1 match against Bordeaux following which the forward player was substituted off in the clash."Neymar? We don't know if it's serious. But you know the guy, he doesn't like to leave a game so if he does, there has to be something. I don't know what he has," goal.com quoted Silva, as saying.The skipper assured that the details regarding Neymar's injury will be shared once there is clarity on the same. "He has to undergo a test and then we'll tell you because you're curious. I think even the doctor isn't sure yet, but you'll know," he said.Earlier this year, Neymar had suffered a hairline fracture on the fifth metatarsal bone and had twisted his right ankle during a clash with Marseille forward Bouna Sarr in their Ligue 1 encounter.
Rahm scripts a master class to win Hero World Challenge
Jon Rahm closed the week with another error-free 65 to coast to a four-shot victory, becoming the first Spaniard to win the Hero World Challenge here. Rahm, who had a bogey free 63 on second day, took his four-day total to 20-under 268 to stay four shots clear of Tony Finau (69) at the Albany Golf Course. Finau's challenge slowed down after the first seven holes and then completely broke down after a double bogey on 14th on the back nine. Yet Finau, whose only career PGA title came in March 2016 in Puerto Rico, finished second for the fourth time this season. Rahm received the Trophy from Pawan Munjal, Chairman, CEO and MD of HeroMotoCorp and takes home a cheque of one million dollars. Rahm, who had won three titles in his first full season in 2017, added three more in 2018. Of the six titles, three are on PGA Tour, two on European and now the unofficial PGA Tour win at Hero World Challenge. Justin Rose (65) finished third, while Henrik Stenson (71) was fourth. Defending champion ...
Neymar injury concern after Bordeaux end PSG's flawless run
Paris Saint-Germain are again sweating on Neymar's fitness after the superstar attacker left the field at Bordeaux clutching his groin before Andreas Cornelius' late header ended the French champions perfect start to the Ligue 1 season. Brazilian Neymar was substituted 57 minutes into the hugely entertaining 2-2 draw the Matmut Atlantique stadium on Sunday, in which he had opened the scoring and had looked in great form before having to head to the dressing room with what looks to be an injury to the same adductor muscle that nearly stopped him from scoring the decisive goal in Wednesday's huge 2-1 win over Liverpool. "I don't know at all (what his injury is). We have to be careful, he said it was not a problem to play tonight but the pitch was hard and I hope he will be in good shape after Strasbourg," said PSG coach Thomas Tuchel, referring to his side's must-win final Champions League group game at Red Star Belgrade in nine days' time. The Ligue 1 leaders, who had won all 14 of ...
Roma stall Inter 2-2, AC Milan move fourth in Serie A
Roma battled back for a 2-2 draw which denied Inter Milan second place in Serie A in a Stadio Olimpico thriller between two sides looking to impress after losing in Europe during the week. Keita Balde Diao gave Inter the half-time lead amid Roma fury at having a penalty appeal denied, but the side from the capital powered back with a Cendiz Under scorcher after the break on Sunday. Aleksandar Kolarov slotted in a penalty to seal a point for the Romans to cancel out Inter captain Mauro Icardi's header. Inter -- who lost to Tottenham Hotspur in the Champions League midweek -- remain third, level on 29 points with second-placed Napoli who travel to Atalanta on Monday. Champions Juventus opened up an 11-point lead on Napoli with a 3-0 win at Fiorentina Saturday with Cristiano Ronaldo scoring from the spot to bag his 10th goal in 14 games. "It was a very entertaining match for all watching and I think a valuable point for both teams," said Inter coach Luciano Spalletti. "It shows we are on
Werner brace lifts Leipzig to third, Dortmund seven points clear
Timo Werner netted twice as RB Leipzig climbed to third in the Bundesliga on Sunday with a 2-0 win over Borussia Moenchengladbach which left leaders Borussia Dortmund seven points clear. After three straight wins, second-placed Gladbach crashed at the Red Bull Arena as Leipzig dominated with Germany striker Werner netting both goals in the first-half to leave him with eight league goals so far this season. "It was a lot of fun," Werner told Sky as Leipzig bounced back from last weekend's shock defeat to Wolfsburg and loss at sister club Red Bull Salzburg on Thursday in the Europa League. "When we play like we did today, everything is possible - not just for me, but for the whole team," he added with Leipzig facing strugglers Freiburg and Mainz before a mouth-watering clash at Bayern Munich on December 19. Leipzig's win pushes defending Bundesliga champions Bayern, who won 2-1 at Werder Bremen on Saturday, down from third to fourth. Leipzig's victory left Dortmund with a commanding ...
Modric tipped to pip French stars to Ballon d'Or and end Ronaldo and Messi era
The winner of the 2018 Ballon d'Or will be revealed at a glittering ceremony in Paris on Monday evening, with Croatia's Luka Modric and a host of French World Cup winners all hoping to finally end the 10-year duopoly of Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi. Ronaldo and Messi have dominated the award for the last decade, claiming it five times each, but the expectation is that a new name will be read out as this year's winner at just after 10pm (2100 GMT) at the Grand Palais, just off the Champs-Elysees. While Ronaldo won another Champions League with Real Madrid in a typically prolific year, and Messi continues to mesmerise for Barcelona, both are now in their 30s and neither really stamped their authority on the World Cup in Russia. That could be crucial. As FIFA president Gianni Infantino said recently: "You could give the Ballon d'Or to half the France team for what they did at the World Cup." Six members of the France side that triumphed in Russia are among the 30 nominees for the ..
Dembele shines as Barca go top with win over Villarreal
Ousmane Dembele took another step on the road to redemption as Barcelona eased past Villarreal on Sunday to move back to the top of La Liga. Dembele, dropped last month by coach Ernesto Valverde, was making his second consecutive start and repaid the faith by teeing up Gerard Pique's opening goal in a comfortable 2-0 win at the Camp Nou. Carles Alena, the 20-year-old Spaniard also regarded as a future star, came off the bench to add a late flourish, chipping in his first La Liga goal and Barca's second after a defence-splitting pass from Lionel Messi. "Alena has earned his step up to the first team," Valverde said. A narrow victory puts Barca back at the top of the table, two points above Sevilla, who can reclaim their place at the summit with a win away to Alaves later on Sunday night. It also extends Barcelona's lead over Atletico Madrid, who were held earlier in the day to a 1-1 draw by Girona. Villarreal, meanwhile, stay 17th, with the pressure mounting on coach Javier Calleja, ...
Liverpool stun Everton with freak goal as Arsenal overpower Spurs
Liverpool stayed hot on the heels of Manchester City after a bizarre late winner against Everton as Arsenal issued a powerful statement of intent on the Premier League derby day. Jurgen Klopp's unbeaten side looked set to drop a precious two points in their dogged pursuit of City but they benefited from a bizarre error from Everton goalkeeper Jordan Pickford to win 1-0 and continue their Anfield hex over their city rivals on Sunday. Unai Emery's Arsenal are now 19 matches unbeaten in all competitions after their thrilling 4-2 victory against Tottenham at the Emirates lifted them to fourth, above fierce rivals Spurs on goal difference. Chelsea recovered from the disappointment of losing their first match of the Premier League season to Spurs last week to beat Fulham 2-0 and climb to third in the table. Liverpool started the Merseyside derby determined to salvage some pride after their midweek defeat to Paris Saint-Germain left their Champions League hopes in the balance. There were ...
UEFA approves creation of third club competition from 2021
UEFA confirmed the creation of a third European club competition from the 2021/22 season designed to offer more clubs and associations the chance to play European football. After approval from UEFA's Executive Committee on Sunday in Dublin, the Europa League will be cut from its current 48-team group stage so that all three competitions feature 32 teams in eight groups of four. The seventh-placed teams in Europe's top four leagues will qualify for the new competition, and they will be joined by a host of clubs from smaller associations. While the structure to UEFA's landmark competition the Champions League remains untouched, Europa League winners will now progress automatically to the last 16 of the competition. Teams that finish second in their Europa League group and third-placed teams from the eight Champions League groups will playoff to join the eight group winners in the last 16. That process in repeated in the UEL2 with the eight second-placed teams from the group stage ...
I-League: Neroca FC rise to fifth spot
The Neroca FC on Sunday rose to the fifth spot in the ongoing 12th edition of I-League after defeating the host Shillong Lajong FC by 2-1 here at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium on Sunday.Felix Chidi drew first blood for Neroca in the 33rd minute, while Phrangki Buam got a much-needed equaliser for the hosts in the 48th Minute. Shillong, however, could not contain Neroca FC's experienced attack as Subash Singh, in the 83rd Minute, sealed the tie for the Imphal-based side.With this win, Neroca FC have now surged up to the fifth spot in the I-League points table with eight points from two wins and an equal number of draws and losses.The visitors were onto serious business right from the first minute when a powerful shot from Neroca forward Subhash Singham hit the top of the woodwork to get deflected to the left post and finally, fell outside the line to be collected by Lajong goalkeeper Neithovilie.Shillong Lajong were playing a spectacular game in the midfield but lack of creativity in ...
Have to win against Canada to enter quarterfinal: India coach
Indian hockey team chief coach Harendra Singh on Sunday said they have to win the match against Canada to create a chance to enter the quarterfinal in the Men's Hockey World Cup.
Hockey World Cup: India hold Belgium in exciting clash (Second Lead, Changing Dateline)
India recovered from a slow start to produce a superb second half performance and hold title contenders Belgium to a 2-2 draw in a crucial Pool C match of the FIH World Cup here on Sunday.