Page 908 - Sports
PSL cannot force foreign players to play in Pakistan: Nadeem Omar
Pakistan Super League (PSL) franchise owner Nadeem Omar has stated that the league is not in a position to force any foreign sportsman to play in Pakistan.He added that in order to do that, the PSL needs to become a "bigger brand.""PSL is not in a position to force any foreign player to play in Pakistan. It has to become a bigger brand in order to generate that sort of demand,' the Express Tribune quoted Omar, as saying.Insisting on the importance of players who are currently a part of the league, Omar said that they are important to create an identity of the PSL."Players who are coming to play only in UAE are also very important to crate PSL's identity. So we have to stay patient and let it create its own identity first," he said.Speaking about the recent controversy over Pakistan captain Sarfraz Ahmed, Omar said that the matter should not be dragged further and that the PCB should clear the issue as soon as possible."I think that we don't have to drag our team into in another ...
Badminton: Srikanth, Sameer crash out of Hong Kong Open
Indian shuttlers Kidambi Srikanth and Sameer Verma lost their respective men's singles quarter-final matches to bow out of the Hong Kong Open here on Friday.
Spain's injured captain Ramos leaves team, to undergo medical review
Spanish national football team captain and defender Sergio Ramos, who flew back to Madrid following international duty, is set to undergo medical scans for an apparent groin injury Friday.
Wild cards for Kadhe, Goveas at Challenger Tennis
Local boys Arjun Kadhe and Aryan Goveas have been awarded main draw singles wild cards at the KPIT men's Challenger tennis startinghere Saturday. The tournament is to be held at the Mhalunge-Balewadi tenniscomplex and will conclude on November 24. Apart from Davis Cuppers Ramkumar Ramnathan and Prajnesh Gunneswaran,who have entry into the main singles draw on their own ranking strength, and four Indian wild cards, the organisers expect a couple of more Indians to come from the qualifying draw. Andrei Kornilov of Uzbekistan has been nominated ATP Supervisor for the event, while Nitin Kannanwar will be the ATP Referee. The qualifying rounds will be played on November 17 and 18 followed by the main draw which begins on November 19. The semifinals and doubles final is scheduled for November 23. The winner of the ATP Challenger will get USD 7,200 (Rs 5,25,000) and gain 80 ATP points, while the runner up will get USD 4,053 (Rs 2,95,000) and 55 ATP points, a media release ...
India face stern test vs Australia in World T20 (Preview)
Having already qualified for the semi-finals of the ICC World T20, India will be up for some real test when they take on a mighty Australia in an inconsequential tie at the Providence Stadium here on Saturday.
Gukesh, Savitha win gold medals in World Cadets Chess Championship
International Master Gukesh D and Savitha Shri B won gold medals in U-12 Open and girls category respectively at the World Cadets Chess Championship in Spain. The Championship, which ended at Galicia on Thursday, was held for the age groups U-8, U-10 and U-12, girls and Open. A record number of 851 participants from 86 federations took part in the Championships. There were 542 players in open section and 309 players in girls' section. Gukesh with 10 wins and a loss comfortably won the title by a huge margin of 1.5 points. Playing white against Razafindratsima Timothe of France, Gukesh opted for the Double fianchetto variation and ruthlessly attacked on the K-side and mated his opponent in 54 moves. The 2nd and 3rd places were won by Murzin Volodor of Russia and Chasin Nico of USA. Savitha of Tamil Nadu effortlessly won the gold in U-12 girls category with 8 wins and 2 draws. Facing the Chigorin defence, she comfortably drew her final round in 38 moves against the Russian Zavivaeve ...
Du Plessis signals T20I retirement post 2020 World T20
South Africa skipper Faf du Plessis on Friday signalled the 2020 ICC World T20 in Australia as his possible swansong from T20 internationals.
I-League: Sandro double strike helps Chennai beat Aizawl
Chennai City FC extended their lead at the top of the I-League standings, getting their fourth win as Sandro Rodriguezs two second half strikes helped them beat hosts Aizawl FC 2-1 here on Friday.
I League: Chennai City FC beat Aizawl 2-1
Chennai City FC rode on twin strikes from Sandro Rodriguez to pip Aizawl FC 2-1 thereby maintaining their pole position in the I-League football tournament on Friday. Liberian striker Ansumanah Kromah's 72nd minute goal for the hosts was not good enough to prevent a second consecutive loss. The southerns now have 13 points from five games, seven points clear of second placed East Bengal and third placed Churchill Brothers. Aizawl, who won the I-League two seasons back, find themselves at the bottom of the table with three losses and two draws from their five games so far. The hosts began confidently enough and pressed high from get go. In fact, they even created two chances in the first quarter of an hour, but Leonce Dodoz, guilty of many misses on the day, muffed both of them. After a goalless first half, Kromah's head from close range in the 48th minute, saw a reflex save from goalkeeper Kabir. In the very next minute, Duata gave away a needless foul in a dangerous position outside .
Chhetri-less India take on Jordan in Asian Cup tune-up
India, despite missing their talismanic striker Sunil Chhetri, will fancy their chances when they take on hosts Jordan in an international football friendly here on Saturday. The match at the Jordan capital is in preparation for the AFC Asian Cup, scheduled to be held in January-February next year. India are ranked 97th while Jordan are placed 112th in the FIFA rankings. Even though they will be without Chhetri, the country's all-time leading scorer, Stephen Constantine's men will take confidence from their goalless stalemate in their previous friendly against higher-ranked China, managed by World Cup-wining coach Marcello Lippi. Chhetri's absence has been dubbed a "big blow" by coach Constantine, under whom India enjoyed a dream 14-match unbeaten run till it was broken by Kyrgyzstan in Bishkek. With only about two months to go for the Asian Cup, the upcoming friendly provides Constantine are the last opportunities to analyse his squad and ready his backup plans. Goalkeeper Gurpreet ..
India squad for Futsal U-20 meet announced
The Futsal association of India on Friday announced the squad for the Asociación Mundial de Futsal (AMF) Futsal U-20 Championships to be held in Valledupar, Columbia.
Women's World Boxing C'ship: Manisha Moun off to winning start
Indian boxer Manisha Moun kick-started her campaign at the ongoing International Boxing Association (AIBA) Women's World Boxing Championship with a victory after defeating Christian Cruz of America in their opening encounter here at the Indira Gandhi Stadium Complex on Friday.Showing a complete dominance, the Indian boxer thrashed her American opponent 5-0 in the women's 54kg boxing category.Moun is among many young Indian boxers who are striving to get an identity for themselves through the ongoing prestigious tournament.Having recently defeated former world champion Dina Zholaman in a boxing event in Poland, Moun is expected to come up with something special in the World Championship.Later in the day, former world champion Sarita Devi will take on Daina Sandra Brugger of Switzerland in women's 60kg category.
Rookie Manisha outclasses two-time bronze medallist Christina Cruz
Rookie boxer Manisha Moun punched above her weight to outclass Christina Cruz of the United States in an unanimous verdict to advance to the 54kg pre-quarterfinals of the AIBA Women's World Championships here on Friday. The 20-year-old Haryana boxer, who was making her debut in the World Championships, was in complete control during the whole of first round against the American, who is almost twice her age. The 36-year-old from New York is a two-time World bronze medallist but Manisha was not the one to be intimidated by the reputation of the opponent. Manisha, who had won a gold at the India Open and a a silver in the Silesian Women's Boxing championship in Poland this year, was the clear winner as she dominated all the three rounds. The five judges have her a unanimous decision (29-28, 30-27, 30-26, 30-26, 29-28). In the pre-quarterfinals on Sunday, Manisha now faces reigning world champion Dina Zholaman of Kazakhstan, whom she had beaten in the Poland event. Manisha's mother Usha ..
Hardik's game was suited for Australian conditions, his absence will hurt India: Hussey
Mike Hussey, who has a fair idea about the current crop of India players, feels that all-rounder Hardik Pandya's absence will "hurt" the visitors in the upcoming Test series against Australia. The series starts on December 6 in Adelaide. Pandya is undergoing rehabilitation after suffering a lower-back injury during the Asia Cup in Dubai last September. "I think Hardik is a wonderful talent and I am sure his game style would have been suited to the Australian conditions. Add to that, the balance he offers the team with his all-round abilities, yes I think his absence will hurt India," Hussey told PTI in an exclusive interview. India have a good chance of doing well against a depleted Australia but 'Mr Cricket' is confident that the home team's seasoned bowling attack will test some of the younger batsmen in the visiting team. India are being dubbed as favourites in many quarters primarily due to the absence of Steve Smith and David Warner. But India could face a different challenge ...
FC Bayern Youth Cup to begin from November 24
The sixth edition of the FC Bayern Youth Cup, an under-16 seven-a-side inter-school football tournament, is set to kickstart from November 24 across six cities in India. The FC Bayern Youth Cup -- a joint initiative by adidas and Germen giants FC Bayern -- will see participation of over 2,000 kids from schools across India. The city legs of the tournament spanning over a period of 14 weeks, will be played in New Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore, Kolkata, Chennai and Srinagar. The final will take place in February next year in Delhi. The tournament allows young children to experience a professional footballer's life. The winning team will represent 'Team India' in the FC Bayern Youth Cup World Finals and get to train under the professionals in Munich in May next year. The selected players also get a chance to watch the season's last Bundesliga match at the iconic Allianz Arena. "India has been referred to as, "the sleeping giant of world football" which was reinforced with FIFA U-17 World Cup .
Hong Kong Open: Srikanth ousted by Nishimoto in quarter-final
Ace Indian shuttler Kidambi Srikanth made an exit from the ongoing Hong Kong Open after being beaten by Kenta Nishimoto of Japan in the quarter-final of the men's singles event here on Friday.The 25-year-old slumped to a 17-21, 13-21 defeat at the hands of the Japanese shuttler in a clash that lasted 44 minutes.Winning 42 rallies in the match and clinching seven consecutive points, Nishimoto did not break much sweat in handing Srikanth a crushing debacle.The match started with both the shuttlers moving head to head in the opening game. After being at par with 5-5 points each on the scoreboard, Nishimoto quickly changed the gear and collected four consecutive points to take a healthy lead.Srikanth could not recover from the blow and trail for the most part of the game. He eventually lost the opener 17-21 to Nishimoto.The second game proved to be more bizarre for the Indian shuttler as, at a point, he was trailing 4-15 in the game. Srikanth collected a few points in an attempt to revive
ECB cancels Emirates T20x League
The Emirates Cricket Board (ECB) has called off the inaugural edition of the Emirates T20x league due to the failure of the tournament to sell the franchise within the specified time."Following talks between the Emirates Cricket Board (ECB) and event promoter OPi, it has been mutually agreed that the planned UAE T20x franchise cricket league will not take place in the UAE this coming December / January," read an official statement from the ECB."The decision follows the conclusion of the Invitation to Tender (ITT) process for tournament franchises. Both the ECB and OPi had been hopeful of achieving the sale of five franchise teams for the first year of the tournament, and whilst negotiations had been completed on two franchise teams and a further three were well advanced, it was felt that there was no longer sufficient time to close the sales process and to successfully deliver and promote a December event," the statement added.The league had got approval from the International Cricket
Yasir's double hurt New Zealand hard in first Test
Pakistan's leg-spinner Yasir Shah struck in his first over to keep New Zealand down to 81-3 at lunch on the opening day of the first Test in Abu Dhabi on Friday. Yasir removed opener Tom Latham with the fourth ball into his introduction for 13 before dismissing Ross Taylor for two after New Zealand won the toss and opted to bat on a grassless Sheikh Zayed Stadium pitch. At the break, skipper Kane Williamson was unbeaten on 40 and Henry Nicholls was 15 not out as Pakistan dominated the session extended to two and a half hours due to Friday prayers. Williamson, declared fit to play after missing the last one-day with a groin injury, has stood firm with three boundaries and having added 42 for the unbroken fourth wicket stand with Nicholls. New Zealand openers Jeet Raval and Latham survived some anxious moments before pace spearhead Mohammad Abbas had Raval edging to wicketkeeper Sarfraz Ahmed after scoring seven. Yasir, who had to endure a tough last week due to the death of his ...
Sports fraternity joins Kohli's 'Jersey knows no gender' campaign
Sports personalities belonging to various field, ranging from tennis to badminton, have joined the 'Jersey know no gender' campaign initiated by India cricket team captain Virat Kohli to support national women cricketers competing in the ongoing International Cricket Council (ICC) Women's World T20.Ahead of India's match with Ireland, Kohli had taken to Twitter and urged people to support the Indian team using #JerseyKnowsNoGender."We're on our way to the semi-finals.. and it's time to back Team India to bring home the World Cup! #JerseyKnowsNoGender?? I nominate @RishabPant777, @NSaina, @chetrisunil11 and all of you to join in. Wear your jerseys and strike the pose to cheer them on! ??@Uber_India #WT20," he wrote.Sports fraternity did not waste much time joining the initiative and wishing the Indian eves for the prestigious tournament.Wicket-keeper batsman Rishabh Pant, who was nominated by Kohli to join the campaign, took to his official Twitter handle and cheered for the Indian ...
Juventus apologise for China 'suicide' condolence message
Juventus have apologised after the Italian champions came under fire for posting a message on Chinese social media about the apparent suicide of a fan, which was later exposed as untrue. The Serie A giants issued a message of condolence on China's Twitter-like Weibo in response to a post on the platform claiming that a fanatical supporter had committed suicide following a row online about striker Cristiano Ronaldo. However, it transpired that Weibo user "Juventus changing room cleaning lady" -- whose real name has not been reported -- was alive and unharmed after Chinese media and police tracked her down. The case has drawn about 40 million views and generated thousands of comments in recent days on Weibo, where many European football clubs and players connect with their Chinese followers. Juventus's post to its 725,000 followers mourning the supposed suicide triggered several days of criticism and shrill calls for the club to apologise. In a statement to AFP, the club said: "The ...