Page 862 - Sports
Title-holders Australia eyeing another good WC show to keep funds flowing
Standing on the cusp of creating history, two-time defending champions Australia are keen to put up a good show at the ongoing hockey World Cup to ensure uninterrupted flow of funds from its government till the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. Aiming to win a rare hat-trick of titles, Australia chief coach Colin Batch said a disastrous outing here could seriously affect its preparations for the Tokyo Olympics as its government may not release additional funds. By virtue of the national team's impressive performances over the years, which includes back-to-back world titles in 2010 and 2014 besides the Champions Trophy and Commonwealth Games gold earlier this year, hockey is one of sports identified by the Australian government to get additional funding till the 2020 Olympics. "It's very important that we continue to get the funding. Of course, it's linked to our performance. It was good to have the funding consolidated right till Tokyo 2020. The team has earned that with their performances over ...
Shakhtar beat Hoffenheim 3-2 in UEFA Champions League
A last-gasp goal from Taison helped Shakhtar Donetsk defeat resilient 10-men Hoffenheim 3-2 in Champions League Group F, keeping alive the Ukrainian side's hopes of reaching the tournament's knockout stages.
Ajax advance in Champions League with 2-0 win against AEK
Dusan Tadic had a brace to lead Ajax 2-0 over AEK Athens and assure the iconic Dutch club of advancing to the Champions League knockout stage for the first time in 13 years.
Manchester United beat Young Boys
A magic intervention by David de Gea and a shot by Marouane Fellaini in injury time was enough for Manchester United to win over Young Boys 1-0 at Old Trafford and advance to the knockout stages of the Champions League.
Man City in knockout stage, play 2-2 draw with Lyon
Manchester City needed a goal from Sergio Agüero in the final 10 minutes to secure a 2-2 draw with Olympique Lyon and punch their ticket for the Champions League knockout stage.
Shuttlers Parupalli Kashyap, Sourabh Verma knocked out of Korea Masters
Shuttlers Parupalli Kashyap and Sourabh Verma on Wednesday were knocked out in round of 32 of the Korea Masters Super 300, resulting in an end of the Indian challenge here at the Gwangju Women's University Stadium.Unseeded in the tournament, Kashyap started his campaign against Lee Dong Keun of South Korea, which also marked the fifth meeting between them with their head-to-head record tied at 2-2.The Indian lost 17-21, 21-13, 21-8 against his South Korean counterpart in a match that lasted more than an hour. After going down in the first game, Kashyap staged a comeback in the second and won it easily. But the Korean surged ahead in the third game, sealing victory by 21-8.On the other hand, Sourabh Verma was too thwarted by Eetu Heino of Finland in the very first round.Verma lost the first game but made a dominating comeback against his Finnish opponent in the second. The third game was, however, much closer, but Heino edged Verma 21-13, 12-21, 21-18.
Boca Juniors boss rejects Conmebol plan for Libertadores final
The president of Boca Juniors has said that his club will not accept the South American Football Confederation (Conmebol) plan for the second leg of the Copa Libertadores final until the regional body rules on its demand for sanctions against River Plate.
Toluca plans to play America tough in Mexican league quarters, Da Silva says
Brazilian midfielder William Da Silva has said that Toluca planned to play tough against America in the quarterfinals of the Liga MX's 2018 Apertura tournament.
Bayern wins 5-1 against Benfica, moves to knockout stage of Champions League
Bayern Munich overcame their recent crisis, winning 5-1 over Benfica, and advancing to the knockout stages of the Champions League.
How Mithali Raj's email got leaked to media: BCCI Secretary questions CEO, GM
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) acting secretary Amitabh Choudhary on Wednesday wrote an email to the BCCI CEO Rahul Johri and General Manager cricket operations Saba Karim, seeking explanation on how the email sent by Indian women's ODI cricket team skipper Mithali Raj was leaked to the media."I was taken aback by media reports today, obviously based on leaks, reporting the content of the email apparently written by Mithali Raj. I am not sure to whom the email was addressed though it remains a fact that the undersigned is a convener of the national women's selection committee and the concerned recipient(s) should immediately have copied the same to me," Choudhary said in an email to Johri and Karim."It is clear that the contents are extremely damaging to certain individual persons and, therefore, to the BCCI. Please let me know the facts of the case at the earliest," he added.Mithali, in a letter to the BCCI on Tuesday, had accused coach Ramesh Powar and Committee of
Defending champion Chennaiyin ready to get their campaign back on track
Chennaiyin FC will take on Kerala Blasters FC in an ISL encounter here Thursday with an aim to reignite its faltering campaign. The defending champion (on 4 points) has struggled to make an impact, notching up a solitary win so far and has suffered six defeats, the most this season alongside FC Pune City. John Gregory's team bounced back with a win against FC Pune but suffered a setback against Jamshedpur in the previous game. Now, with a couple of games in the space of four days, the Chennai team will be hoping to turn things around before it is too late. Languishing at ninth in the points table just ahead of a winless Delhi Dynamos, the home side needs to step up several notches if it has to put it across the Blasters, who have been patchy this season. The famed Chennaiyin defence has not been at its best and 16 goals have been scored against the team so far. It would be a worry for Gregory, who will be desperate for better times. The forward line too hasn't fired on all cylinders ..
Mickey Arthur opens up about Mohammad Amir's comeback
Pakistan head coach Mickey Arthur on Wednesday opined what left-arm pacer Mohammad Amir needs to do to get back into international cricket.The 26-year-old pacer has been out of form for the past few months after playing nearly non-stop since the ban on him ended in 2016.Arthur, in an exclusive interview to PakPassion, said that Amir is following up on the information that the former Pakistan all-rounder Azhar Mahmood and he have sent through to him."We (Mahmood and Arthur) monitor Amir's progress. Every time he bowls, we look at the videos and send our comments back to him. Let's be clear about the fact that Amir is a quality bowler, he has a big-match temperament and I am hoping that we can have him back in the fold, sooner rather than later, provided he gives us the ammunition to pick him," Arthur said."It's runs for batsmen which is the criteria for selection and similarly, it is wickets for bowlers which are important. If we can get Amir swinging the ball again, getting through ...
Emotions of an introvert - and a cricket legend (Book review)
Title: 281 and Beyond; Author: V.V.S. Laxman with R. Kaushik; Publisher: Westland Sport; Pages: 309; Price: Rs 699
Tour game: Rain washes away first day's play in Sydney
The first day of the tour game between Cricket Australia XI and India was abandoned without a ball being here at the Sydney Cricket Ground on Wednesday. Incessant rains kept the players away as inclement weather didn't relent at all. It started raining in Sydney on Tuesday night and after a deluge through the day, the ground was soaking wet. There was a brief stoppage in rain at 1 pm local time and the grounds men worked hard to get the pitch and outfield ready. Toss was scheduled for 3.30pm local time with play to commence at 4 pm, if no further rain showers came forth. But play was abandoned for the day at 3 pm local time, with half an hour extension from day two onwards. A couple members of the Indian support staff had visited the ground to assess conditions earlier in the morning. The team didn't even arrive at the ground owing to poor weather conditions. There is more rain forecast for Thursday morning but the weather is expected to clear from day two afternoon.
Chess world title match comes down to rapid tiebreakers
After more than 50 hours of play over nearly three weeks, the chess world championship title will be decided by speedy tiebreaker games. A 12-game battle of brains between American challenger Fabiano Caruana and reigning champion Magnus Carlsen of Norway has resulted in 12 straight draws the first time that has happened in a chess world championship match. That means the match which is taking place behind soundproof glass on a stage in London now comes down to a series of rapid games that could even conclude in a sudden-death format known as "Armageddon" if a winner can't be found. Caruana, 26, is trying to become the first American since Bobby Fischer to be crowned chess world champion. Still, he remains the underdog against the 27-year-old Carlsen, a former teenage prodigy who has been the world's top-ranked player since the age of 19 and is considered even more dominant when playing with shorter time controls. However, Carlsen stunned many commentators when he offered Caruana a .
Tiger hunting more Majors in 2019
A rejuvenated Tiger Woods will head into the New Year excited knowing he's won six of his 14 Major Championship titles on three of the four 2019 host venues. Former world number one Woods made a successful return to golf this year after missing most of the previous two seasons through injury. While Woods finished his season with a dramatic, emotional win in the Tour Championship in Atlanta in September, he fell short in the season's Majors, tying for sixth at the British Open and finishing runner-up at the PGA Championship. Next year however Woods' Major campaign will feature three stops on courses where he was won before. As well as four victories in the Masters at Augusta National, Woods has also won at Pebble Beach, venue for the US Open, and Bethpage Black in New York's Long Island, which is hosting the PGA Championship. "The Major venues for next year do excite me as I have won on three of the four," Woods told AFP. Woods said his performances in the final two Majors of 2018 ...
IOC chief: Tokyo 'best-prepared' city for Olympics
IOC chief Thomas Bach said Wednesday that Tokyo was the best-prepared host Olympic city he could remember, with just more than 600 days to go until the 2020 Opening Ceremony. Speaking to representatives from 206 Olympic Committees from around the world, Bach noted he had some "unfortunate" experiences with the preparations of some Olympic Games. But he added: "I do not remember any host city which was so far in its preparations two years before the Olympic Games than Tokyo." Japan has mostly lived up to its reputation for efficiency, with construction projects generally on schedule. However, there have been concerns over the summer heat in Tokyo affecting endurance events such as the marathon and race walking. There has also been some wrangling over the cost of the Games -- split between the 2020 Organising Committee, the Tokyo city government and the central government -- with disagreements over what counts as Olympics-linked expenditure. According to the latest version of the ...
PSG lay claim to title of world's 'hottest club'
Paris Saint-Germain may still be playing catch-up with Europe's traditional giants on the field, but they claim to have already become "the hottest club in the world". That is the boast made by Russell Stopford, the 47-year-old Briton who joined the club last year as their Chief Digital Officer, having previously worked at Manchester City and Barcelona. In an age where clubs seem to be as keen to grow their brand and increase their digital fanbase as they are to win trophies and generate income, there is no doubt that PSG have been transformed this decade under Qatari ownership. PSG have more than 62 million followers across the major social media networks of Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and YouTube. That leaves them a long way behind the very biggest names on the continent -- Real Madrid and Barcelona each have well over 100 million fans on Facebook alone. PSG, the reigning French champions, had four consecutive runs to the quarter-finals of the Champions League before losing in the
Bayern rout Benfica to reach last 16, ease pressure on Kovac
Bayern Munich romped to an emphatic 5-1 home win against Benfica on Tuesday to qualify for the Champions League last 16 and ease the pressure on coach Niko Kovac. Arjen Robben and Robert Lewandowski both scored twice before Franck Ribery completed the rout at the Allianz Arena after Gedson Fernandes had netted Benfica's consolation. Kovac's team shrugged off lacklustre league form -- winning just two and losing three of their last seven Bundesliga games -- with a convincing display. This is the 11th season in succession Bayern have reached the last 16 of the Champions League. While Bayern sit just fifth in the Bundesliga, they are flying in Europe, having now chalked up four wins and a draw in the Champions League's group stage. They need just a point at Ajax in a fortnight to win Group A, while the best Benfica can hope for is third and a place in the Europa League knock-out phase. Bayern were unrecognisable from the team which leaked goals in a 3-3 draw with Bundesliga strugglers ...
Leicester win Saints shoot-out to book Man City clash
Leicester will face holders Manchester City in the League Cup quarter-finals after a 6-5 penalty shoot-out win over Southampton on Tuesday. In a match rearranged following the tragic death of Leicester owner Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha in October, Claude Puel's side were held to a 0-0 draw by struggling Southampton at the King Power Stadium. But in the shoot-out, Manolo Gabbiadini's effort was saved by Danny Ward before Nampalys Mendy bagged the winner for Leicester. It was Leicester's first home victory since Vichai's helicopter crashed outside the club's stadium just days before they were scheduled to face the Saints in the fourth round tie. Leicester, who last won the League Cup in 2000, will host Premier League champions City on December 18 for a place in the semi-finals. Southampton are on a wretched run in the league, but Mark Hughes' side came close to winning in normal time. Nathan Redmond turned past Caglar Soyuncu and Danny Simpson on a mazy run into the penalty area and the ...