Page 946 - Sports
Swapna to finally get 7 pairs of customized shoes for her 12 toes
It was just months ago that blood spurted from six-toed Asiad gold medalist International athlete Swapna Barman's feet. The athlete suffered the injury because her feet could not fit in normal shoes.The curious case of her six- toed feet was known to everyone and Union Ministry of Sports taking cognizance of the special requirement told apparel and footwear giants Adidas to make specialized shoes for Swapna.On Monday, Swapna was ensured that she will no longer have to squeeze her 6 toes into shoes made for 5 toes as the apparel brand will provide her with seven unique pairs, one each for the seven different events of Heptathlon.Swapna recently visited the firm's Athlete Services lab in Herzogenaurach, Germany, where a detailed footwear analysis was carried out for this purpose.The West Bengal athlete was ecstatic on hearing the news, and underlining her goal of clinching the gold in 2020 Tokyo Olympics, she said, "I have realized my dream of winning a gold medal for India in Asian ...
Pakistan coach Arthur demands apology from Cricket Committee chief Mohsin
Pakistan cricket team's head coach Mickey Arthur has demanded an unconditional apology from newly appointed chairman of Cricket Committee Mohsin Khan for his unsavoury remarks in the media. According to the "Jang" newspaper, Arthur has made it clear that unless former Test opener Mohsin apologises for his alleged remarks about the head coach in a television show, he (Arthur) has no intentions of holding any meeting with him. The report says that Mickey Arthur has made his stance amply clear to the PCB officials. Mohsin who is heading a high powered committee that includes former Test captains, Wasim Akram and Misbah-ul-Haq and ex-captain of the Pakistan women's team, Urooj Mumtaz has termed Arthur "stupid and donkey" for supporting Muhammad Aamir. The PCB while appointing the cricket committee recently has also given Arthur a contract until next year's World Cup in England. The committee is authorised to oversee the work of the national selection committee and the Pakistan team ...
Duel with Barcelona will show team's true level: Inter Milan coach
Inter Milan coach Luciano Spalletti on Monday said the second leg of the UEFA Champions League group stage duel with Barcelona will reveal if his squad can take on the best teams in the world.
Ghosal skips Senior Nationals, aims to defend Kolkata International title
India's top squash player Saurav Ghosal is skipping the Senior National Championships and instead looking to defend the title in the USD 30,000 Kolkata International meet beginning here Wednesday. "There's a big event lined up in Hong Kong at the end of this month and then there is another one in Egypt from December 3-9. So starting with the Asian Games in August, I will end up playing nine events in about four months which is a lot," the 12-time champion, who played in every national championship since he was 17, said. The national meet is slated next month in New Delhi. "The next big event starting in the PSA circuit is from January 8 in Mumbai. It's a USD 70,000 event. So I just feel that this is an objective decision rather than an emotional one," the 32-year-old said. The world number one has got the top billing in the meet. In the last edition in 2015, he defeated former world number 1 Marwan El Shorbagy. The five-day meet is a part of the 225th anniversary celebrations of the ..
I-League: Real Kashmir host Churchill in historic first home game (Preview)
Newly-promoted Real Kashmir FC will look to build on their shock opening match win when they take on a resurgent Churchill Brothers at the picturesque TRC turf ground here on Tuesday.
Harika in second round, Padmini ousted in tie-breaker
Grandmaster Dronavalli Harika kept herself in contention by winning against Sopiko Guramishvili of Georgia in the first round's first tie-break but Padmini Rout's campaign ended after a loss in the Women's World Chess Championship here Monday. Harika won 2.5-1.5 and Rout went down to Zhansaya Abdumalik of Kazakhastan by a similar margin. With Koneru Humpy already in the second round of the 64-player knockout event, all eyes were on Harika and she did not disappoint despite being held to a draw in the first round of the rapid tie-breaker. Viswanathan Anand once famously said that "it's easier to draw with white when you don't want to". The golden words struck chord once more as Khukashvili paid the prize of playing for a level position with the slightly favourable colour. It was a Petroff defense by Harika in which the queens got traded very early in the opening and in her bid to exchange everything, Khukashvili surrendered the Bishop pair in the ensuing endgame. This was not a ...
Alcis Sports partners Esports Federation of India for Worlds
Alcis Sports, an Indian sportswear brand, on Monday announced their association with Esports Federation of India for the 10th Esports World Championship in Taiwan.
I-League: Asish's strike helps Indian Arrows register first win
The All India Football Federations (AIFF) development side Indian Arrows registered their first win of the 12th I-League campaign riding on an 11th minute Asish Rai strike to overcome Shillong Lajong FC at the Barabati stadium here on Monday.
Women's World Boxing Championships set to see highest number of participants
The Women's World Boxing Championships beginning here on November 15 is set to see the highest ever participation in the flagship event with close to 300 pugilists from 70 countries taking part in the Indian Capital. Boxers from 16 countries, including from Germany, USA, England, Ukraine, Panama, Australia, Thailand, Bulgaria and Somalia, are arriving early to get acclimatised to the Indian conditions. Among the top boxers in the fray include India's Mary Kom, who is seeking her sixth world crown, and Italy's Alessia Mesiano in the feather weight category. The Italian, who won a gold in 2016, would look to repeat her performance once again. Kazakh woman Nazyum Kyzaiba, with a gold medal in 2016, will also seek to retain here title in 51Kg. 2018 Commonwealth Games gold medallist Australian Kaye Scott, Peamwillai Laopeam of Thailand, Rio Olympics bronze medallists trio of Anastasia Beliakova of Russia, Nouchka Fontjin of the Netherlands and Ingrit Valencia Victory of Columbia are among .
Opportunity for strugglers Pune, Chennaiyin to improve
Struggling to make a mark this season, defending champions Chennaiyin FC and FC Pune City will look to put up an improved display in their Hero Indian Super League (ISL) match here on Tuesday. Last season, the two teams were blazing away and qualified for the play-offs. Chennaiyin FC went on to win the league title, and now both are at the bottom of the table. Time is running out for both the teams as they face each other in a crucial battle at the Shree Shiv Chhatrapati Sports Complex Stadium. "Nobody would have thought that two of last year's semifinalists would be sitting in this position when we are coming close to about one-third of the season. It's our responsibility to dig ourselves out of the hole," said interim coach Pradyum Reddy. Reddy took over from the sacked Miguel Angel Portugal and has been trying to get the team back on track. His first attempt was a disaster as they lost 2-4 against FC Goa but a draw against Kerala Blasters FC suggested his team could turn things ...
Mohammed, Aghara enter main draw
Tamil Nadu's Fahad Mohammed and Gujarat's Maulin Aghara scored contrasting wins in the singles final qualifying round matches of the J S Pereira Memorial AITA Ranking Men's Tennis Tournament on Monday. Mohammed, seeded no 1 in the qualification rounds, was in complete control against Maharashtras unseeded Jaganmaya Panigrahi. He coasted to a quick 6-4 6-0 victory and booked a place in the main draw, which commences on Tuesday. Fourth-seeded Aghara faced a bit of struggle against unfancied Antariksh Mohandas of Maharashtra and was taken the distance before winning a tight third set tie-breaker to come through the qualifiers. The Gujarat player prevailed at 6-4 3-6 7-6(2). Arthav Neema of Madhya Pradesh, Munshaw Vaidik of Guajarat and Suraj H of Kerala, also easily won the final round matches and booked their berths in the main draw. Results:Men's singles (final qualifying round):Fahad Mohammed (TN) bt Jaganmaya Panigrahi (MH) 6-4, 6-0; Arthav Neema (MP) bt Mohit Bharadwaj .
Asish Rai's strike helps Indian Arrows register first win
The All India Football Federation's development side Indian Arrows registered their first win of the Hero I-League, riding on an 11th minute Asish Rai strike to overcome Shillong Lajong FC here Monday. The side from Meghalaya looked clearly out of depth in the heat and humidity of Odisha's second largest city against a well-travelled Arrows unit and capitulated to a second successive defeat from three games, despite impressive performances in their first two outings back home. The Arrows did well to come back after a 1-4 loss to Chennai in their opening game. Arrows coach Floyd Pinto made a couple of changes to the XI which started the first game against Chennai. Aimol began at right back in place of Jitendra Singh and Boris Singh replaced Sanjiv Stalin, who had a mediocre outing against Chennai, on the right side of midfield. Alison Kharsyntiew, the Shillong head, opted for an unchanged starting line-up, playing a regular 4-4-2 with Mahesh Naorem Singh and captain Samuel Lalmuanpuia .
Newly-built Lucknow stadium renamed after Atal Bihari Vajpayee
The newly-built Ekana International Stadium has been renamed after former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, an official release said here Monday. The stadium will now be known as 'Bharat Ratna Atal Bihari Vajpayee International Cricket Stadium', the release added. The city will host its first international match at the stadium on Tuesday when India play West Indies in the second T20 International match.
India's Divyansh wins silver, bronze for Elavenil in Asian Championship
India's junior shooters Divyansh Singh Panwar and Elavenil Valarivan won the silver and bronze medals in their respective air rifle events of the 11th Asian Shooting Championship here Tuesday. Divyansh shot 251.4 in the final of 10m air rifle junior men's event to finish behind gold medallist Wang Yuefeng of China, who shot a junior world and Asian record score of 252.3 to emerge triumphant. Elavenil shot 227.9 in the 10m air rifle junior women's event to claim a bronze. The competition saw a 1-2 finish by Chinese shooters with Shi Mengyao winning gold with an effort of 250.3 while compatriot Xu Hong won silver with a final score of 249.3. Both events saw three Indians qualify for the eight-woman final round. In the junior men's competition, besides Divyansh, Arjun Babuta and Hriday Hazarika made it to the final to finish fifth and sixth respectively. In the women's event, Shreya Agrawal and Mehuli Ghosh also entered the finals along with Elavenil to finish sixth and seventh ...
Ghosal main attraction in Kolkata squash meet
Top-ranked Indian squash player Saurav Ghosal will be the main attraction in the $30,000 PSA tournament, the Kolkata International, starting from Wednesday at the Calcutta Racket Club here.
Hyderabad trades Dhawan owing to finances
Sunrisers Hyderabad, on Monday, swapped their opening batsman Shikhar Dhawan in exchange for three Delhi Daredevils players namely Vijay Shankar, Shahbaz Nadeem and Abhishek Sharma for the upcoming 2019 edition of the Indian Premier League.Sunisers revealed the information via their twitter account stating that they traded Dhawan for three players of Delhi team.The team stated Dhawan had been unsettled with the amount he was bought for in the auction which they could not rectify due to IPL rules. The Sunrisers last picked up the Delhi southpaw in the auction after using one of its RTM (Right to Match) cards earlier this year."The franchise has made the decision to trade Shikhar as they feel it is best for both parties. Sunrisers value the great contribution that Shikhar has made over the years and saddened that due to financial reasons, he feels it's time to move one. We wish him and his family all the best," Sunrisers added."We have traded Shikhar Dhawan to Delhi Daredevils for Vijay
Tired Saurav Ghosal pulls out of nationals
World number 11, Saurav Ghosal, who is India's top-ranked squash player, has opted out of Senior Squash National Championship to be held in New Delhi in December.Citing rest due to "extremely busy" international season as reason for not featuring in the national tournament, the defending champion posted a message on his Twitter handle.Ghosal, in his message stated that he has played in every national championship since he was 17 and it was with a very heavy heart that he had taken the decision to skip it."I feel it is in my best interest to rest my body and mind at the end of a gruelling year of competing," wrote Ghosal. I believe this break will help me prepare in the best possible way for the new season starting in January 2019. You can be rest assured I have not taken this decision lightly and fully appreciate the significance of playing the Nationals," wrote the 32-year-old in his message."I feel it is in my best interest to rest my body and mind at the end of a grueling year of ..
Gambhir steps down as Delhi Ranji captain
Cricketer Gautam Gambhir on Monday stepped down as the captain of the Delhi Ranji team and said it was time for young guns to lead the squad.
Gambhir slams cricket administrators after Azharuddin rings Eden Gardens' bell
Gautam Gambhir on Monday slammed the BCCI, Committee of Administrators (CoA) and the Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB) for allowing former India captain Mohammad Azharuddin to ring the bell at the start of the first T20I between India and West Indies in Kolkata on Sunday.
Dominant India eye another series win over WI in Lucknow's debut
The misery has seemed never-ending for the West Indies and India would look to ensure that the script doesn't change when the two sides clash in the second Twenty20 International here on Tuesday. India's four-match T20 losing streak against the West Indies ended on Sunday in Kolkata. And in the penultimate game of what has been a disastrous tour for the visitors, India would be favourites to lock the series in their favour. India's last win against the West Indies before Sunday came way back on March 23, 2014 in the World T20 in Bangladesh. With the win at the Eden Gardens, India managed to better their head-to-head record against the reigning world T20 champions to 5-3 now from nine exchanges between 2009 and 2017. The five-wicket win in Kolkata might have looked a bit laboured for the hosts but the absence of batting talisman Virat Kohli cannot be discounted. It was also the first T20 International for which India dropped Mahendra Singh Dhoni, the colossus whose batting form has ...