Page 95 - Sports

Feeble to formidable

India's fielders can today probably save at least 50 runs more per innings as opposed to our teams of the past

CHESS #1374

The World Junior concluded in Mumbai with Polina Shuvalova (Russia) winning the Girls section with 9.5/11 ahead of Mobina Alinasab (9/11 Iran) and Elizaveta Solzhenskina (8/11 Russia)

CHESS #1374

Wang Hao was the second Chinese GM to qualify for the Candidates, tying for the title at the FIDE Grand Open Chess

The world's only polo competition on ice in St Moritz's lures the jet set

The tournament is the brainchild of Reto Gaudenzi, who hatched the idea in 1983 and has watched the event become so big that it requires military-style planning with Swiss technical know-how

In pics: Mary Kom assured 8th world championship medal; 3 others in semis

Mary Kom bettered her own record as the most successful boxer in the history of the AIBA Women's World Championship

NYKS admit card 2019 out on nyks.nic.in: Important dates & instructions

The examination will be conducted to fill vacancies for the post of Assistant Director, District Youth Coordinator, Junior Computer Programmer, Senior Hindi Translator, assistant and others

CHESS #1363

Suryasekhar Ganguly won the prestigious One Belt One Road Open in Hunan, China, with 7 points from 9 games to bag $50,000

How home-grown tech giants are reinventing the experience of sport

Indian tech companies are clearly determined to stay ahead of the game

CHESS #1362

The big news of the week for Indian fans was the fantastic performance of two teenaged siblings at the Xtracon Open in Denmark

CHESS #1358

The Asian continental saw Indians take four out of five spots for the World Cup 2019

All eyes on Dhoni's approach as India take on depleted West Indies

Mahendra Singh Dhoni's batting approach and position in the middle order will be the team management's primary concern when India take on an ousted-yet-dangerous West Indies in the sixth league phase encounter of the World Cup here Thursday. As the league phase hits the home stretch, India will look to ensure a smooth passage into the semi-finals with yet another victory. But it could be easier said than done against a West Indies side, which might play party poopers with nothing to lose in their remaining few games. In fact, West Indies' unpredictability and the former India captain's repeated failure during the important second Powerplay overs leaves skipper Virat Kohli with a few points to ponder. Dhoni's painfully slow approach against the Afghanistan yielded 28 off 52 balls and he was roundly criticised. Even the normally restrained Sachin Tendulkar questioned the approach. "There was no positive intent," the usually reticent Tendulkar's observation on a TV channel has been spot .

Remembering Malcolm: 'Friend' and a 'giver' who can never be forgotten

He arrived as a raw talent, became a world beater, made friends for life and suddenly left them with moistened eyes and a void that they have never been able to fill. That's Malcolm Marshall for you. He is forever embedded in the soul of Hampshire cricket and in the memory of those who saw him run in from the ridge at the Old Northlands Road ground. The imposing new stadium which is off city limits became operational in the early 2000 and probably doesn't give an idea what the 'Bajan' meant for the club for whom he took 1000 wickets in the Championship. "Malcolm and I were very close and it was wonderful. He was the best friend I had in cricket," said Mark Nicholas, now a renowned commentator and back then Marshall's captain at the Hampshire county. "Northlands Road was a very small and personal ground. It was a good ground for batsmen even though there was this little ridge (little hilltop) at one end. Malcolm would bowl into that ridge effectively," he reminisced. As Nicholas, who ..

Criticise us but don't abuse: Sarfaraz after 'fat pig' comment

Captain Sarfaraz Ahmed has asked the fanatical fans of Pakistan cricket to not make abusive personal attacks on the players after a supporter compared the wicket-keeper batsman to a "fat pig". Pakistani fans have severely criticised the national team after its poor show against arch-rivals India in the World Cup encounter in Manchester. A fresh video recently surfaced where skipper Sarfaraz was seen was walking in a mall in England with his son on his lap when a fan stopped him and asked why he was looking like a fat pig. "I can''t say anything on this. It''s not in our hands to control what people say about us. Winning and losing is part of the game and it''s not that we are the first team to have lost a match; previous teams also have faced defeats," Sarfaraz said after Pakistan kept alive their semifinal hopes with the win over South Africa in London. "Had earlier teams faced the kind of criticism that we are facing, they would have realised how much these things hurt us. Now, ...

I don't see why Mitch and I can't play in the same eleven: Behrendorff

Jason Behrendorff doesn't seen an issue if left-arm pacers like him and Mitchell Starc feature in the Australian playing eleven more often, especially after the duo's match winning performances against England in the World Cup here on Tuesday. Behrendorff was brought into the side for just his eighth ODI due to England's historic struggles against left-arm pacemen and that decision proved a masterstroke at Lord's. The 29-year-old took his maiden international five-for thanks to figures of 5/44, while Starc ended with 4/43 as England were skittled for 221 in pursuit of 286 a 64-run defeat. And although this was just the second ODI in which they have appeared together, Behrendorff is now keen to continue his burgeoning new-ball combination with Starc. "We don't often see it but I don't see why we can't play together," he said. "Sometimes you play three right-armers, so why can't we play two lefties? Mitch and I have different roles throughout the team, so it's really good that we could

Rice terraces and 'turtle shell' scrums: barefoot rugby in Vietnam

Barefoot and muddied, a group of youngsters sprint across a makeshift pitch in rural Vietnam, passing the ball in a game of touch rugby in a country where few people have ever heard of the sport. They belong to Vietnam's only rugby programme for locals, rolled out for kids in a remote commune where some players have to travel by boat to training sessions often held against a backdrop of rice terraces and curious onlookers. Few knew anything about rugby when they joined the scheme, marvelling at the egg-shaped ball, but are now keen fans planning to closely follow the Rugby World Cup in Japan, which starts in September. "I haven't watched international rugby... but if possible I will surely watch the Rugby World Cup," said 14-year-old Bao Cham, a player on the Silver Fox team in Kim Boi district. With the first Rugby World Cup held in Asia, organisers are hoping to boost rugby's popularity in backwaters like Kim Boi, where most kids count Lionel Messi as a hero but have never heard of .

CWC'19: Key players to watch-out in New Zealand-Pakistan clash

Unbeaten New Zealand will lock horns with Pakistan on Wednesday to confirm their spot in the semi-finals in the ongoing ICC Men's Cricket World Cup at Edgbaston in Birmingham.The Kiwis have not faced defeat in the tournament so far and are at the number two position with 11 points. Their match against India was called off due to rain.Blackcaps have displayed an all-around performance in batting, bowling, and fielding. Ross Taylor and skipper Kane Williamson are scoring impressive runs in the top-order. Lockie Ferguson and Trent Boult have been the breakthrough players making the team one of the most balanced ones.On the other hand, Pakistan have only won two matches against England and South Africa out of their total six and have five points.Although, Pakistan's hopes to make it to the semi-finals are still alive if they manage to win their three upcoming games, including one against New Zealand.Here are the key players to watch out in the New Zealand-Pakistan clash:Kane WilliamsonNew

This is still our World Cup, insists Stokes despite back-to-back losses

England all-rounder Ben Stokes insists that back-to-back losses have not hampered their hopes of winning a maiden World Cup trophy. After a relatively promising start to their World Cup campaign, England suffered consecutive losses Sri Lanka (by 20 runs) and Australia (64 runs) to find themselves in a precarious position. England have slid to the fourth position in the 10-team standings with eight points from seven games. The hosts now have two tough games remaining against India on June 30 and New Zealand on July 3. "This is our World Cup. We've had great support over the last four years and we know how much the World Cup means to fans and we know that as players as well. It's one of the biggest times and greatest times to be a cricketer, which is to represent your country at a World Cup," Stokes said after the defeat against Australia on Tuesday. "But we are not going to take a backwards step and, as I've said, this is our World Cup and we are going to go about it how we want to," ..

Starc says can't afford to breathe easy after Australia secure semifinal berth

Australia became the first side to book a semifinal berth in the World Cup but team's pace spearhead Mitchell Starc said the defending champions can't afford to take their foot off the gas ahead of the knock-out stage. Australia on Tuesday defeated hosts England by 64 runs at Lord's here to seal a place in the last-four. But ahead of the semifinal, Australia still have two more league games remaining against Trans-Tasman rivals New Zealand and South Africa. "There's a lot of cricket to come before semifinal time. We've got two really important games but playing here at Lord's where the final is going to be has given us confidence," Starc said. "We've got another game here against New Zealand, which is going to be tough. They're playing some fantastic cricket and they've really gone under the radar. Nobody's really spoken too much about them and they keep winning games. Starc, who returned with impressive figures of 8.4-1-43-4, showered accolades on left-arm pace colleague Jason ...

We have not stuck to our batting mantra in last two games: Morgan

England captain Eoin Morgan feels not sticking to their "batting mantra" has cost them back-to-back defeats against Sri Lanka and Australia in the World Cup, making the road to semifinals much tougher for the pre-tournament favourites. England had not lost back-to-back ODIs on home soil since 2015, yet they followed a loss to Sri Lanka at Headingley, where they failed to chase down 233, with a 64-run reverse against their oldest rivals at Lord's. It was once again an unsuccessful chase that proved their undoing as Australia's 285/7 was more than enough when left-arm seamers Jason Behrendorff and Mitchell Starc took nine wickets between them. "Both this game and the last, we struggled with the basics of what we call our batting mantra," said the England captain after the loss here on Tuesday. "Strong intent, building partnerships, and doing it in our own way we haven't done those for long enough periods of the game in order to either chase down 230 or chase down 280, and that's ...

Everton sign Barca midfielder Gomes

Everton have signed Barcelona midfielder Andre Gomes on a 22 million pound five-year deal, the Premier League club has announce. The 24-year-old Portuguese international makes a permanent move to Goodison Park after a loan spell there last season. "I know the club made a massive effort to sign me and I'm very happy and thankful to them," Gomes told evertontv. "I said during the year that I felt part of a family and that is the most important thing to me. "Last year was a really good experience for me. I just wanted to feel part of something special and I found it here. It was good for me in that moment and right now, after signing for Everton, it's even better." Gomes was part of Portugal's Euro 2016-winning squad. He moved to the Nou Camp from Valencia in the summer of 2016 and made 72 appearances.