Author: WebDesk

Nethra Kumanan on Friday secured a berth for India in the women’s ILCA 6 (Laser Radial) sailing competition in the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. She finished fifth in the Last Chance Regatta in the coast off Hyeres in France, but claimed the slot available through World Sailing’s Emerging National Programme (ENP), thanks to others from ENP countries taking two places in the competition. With Ebru Bolat (Romania) and Marilena Makri (Cyprus), both ENP sailors, securing the top two positions, Nethra had to ensure that she not only finish ahead of Ines Gmati (Tunisia), but also avoid being disqualified because of…

Sam Curran coming out for the toss raised a few eyebrows. Not only because of the team’s regular captain Shikhar Dhawan’s absence, but also for the fact that Punjab Kings’ designated vice-captain Jitesh Sharma wasn’t given the role. “Shikhar picked up a niggle. That’s why I’m here,” Curran, who was standing in for the regular skipper, said at the toss. Before that a post from Punjab Kings on X said: “Captain A̶r̶j̶a̶n̶ reporting for duty!” It was accompanied by a video clip of Sam Curran. Interestingly, at the pre-IPL photo shoot, Jitesh was present on Punjab Kings’ behalf as the…

Shamik Chakrabarty & Vaibhav Tripathi The striking image came at the end of the Gujarat Titans versus Mumbai Indians game at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Sunday. BCCI secretary Jay Shah took Indian cricket’s ‘outcast’ Ishan Kishan aside and had a friendly conversation for a few minutes. Going by the body language of Shah, it felt like he wasn’t bearing a grudge. Far from it. After the game that Titans won by six runs, MI ‘keeper was having a chat with his captain Hardik Pandya and Titans skipper Shubman Gill when Shah approached Kishan and took him aside.…

Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) captain Faf du Plessis thinks highly about MS Dhoni and acknowledges his influence on his development as a leader. Before assuming the leadership role at RCB, Du Plessis was an integral part of Dhoni’s Chennai Super Kings (CSK) squad. As a key opener, Du Plessis excelled in the vibrant yellow jersey, emerging as one of the mainstays under Dhoni’s captaincy. Joining the Super Kings in 2012, the South African played a pivotal role in the franchise until 2021. “He (Dhoni) is the greatest ever captain, and I am very lucky that I have spent some time…

Mumbai Indians have brought in England pacer Luke Wood as a replacement for the injured Jason Behrendorff for the upcoming IPL 2024. The IPL’s official page confirmed this development on March 18, Monday. Wood, a left-arm pacer, has played five T20Is and two ODIs for England, with eight T20I wickets to his name. He joins MI as a like-for-like replacement for Australian Behrendorff at a base price of Rs 50 lakh. Recognised for his ability to swing the ball back into right-handers, Wood poses a threat to the batters. Additionally, he has demonstrated prowess with the bat, evident from his…

Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) fans were treated to a delightful double dose of joy, as Virat Kohli joined the pre-season camp at M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru, following the franchise’s triumph in the Women’s Premier League in New Delhi a day earlier. Kohli was seen training at the iconic venue in the Garden City. Welcoming Kohli to their pre-season camp, Royal Challengers Bangalore took to social media. “Daddy’s Home and he is ready to reign again! Virat Kohli checked in to Namma Bengaluru, and we can’t keep calm. Happy,” said an RCB post on X. Kohli expressed his excitement about…

Shamik Chakrabarty & Subhayan Chakraborty On a day when the International Cricket Council put out a media release at the conclusion of its Board meeting in Dubai, a report started to circulate apparently in the Pakistan Cricket Board’s (PCB) media group, purportedly claiming that the 2025 Champions Trophy was included in the Board meeting’s agenda. The Champions Trophy next year is scheduled to be played in Pakistan in February-March and the WhatsApp post, apparently from a person who is a part of the PCB’s media wing, claimed that the tournament’s hosting has been finalised. The post was written in Urdu…

In the Champions League era, only the Zinedine Zidane-coached Real Madrid (2016, 2017 and 2018) have retained European football’s biggest prize. If Manchester City are to become the third English team to win club football’s biggest prize back-to-back – after Liverpool (1977, 1978) and Nottingham Forest (1979, 1980) – they’ll have to do it the hard way, by overcoming a Real side revitalised by last summer’s signing of Jude Bellingham. City will take heart from their 4-0 evisceration of Real at the Etihad Stadium in the second leg of the semi-final last May. But unlike their opponents, who enjoy a…

Afghanistan received a significant setback on Wednesday, as their star spinner, Rashid Khan, was ruled out of the upcoming three-match T20I series against India, scheduled to commence on January 11, in Mohali. The wily leg-spinner, who underwent a back surgery a couple of months ago, has not fully recovered, leading to his absence in the matches against India. Ibrahim Zadran, the new T20I captain for Afghanistan, confirmed Rashid’s unavailability during the pre-match press conference in Mohali. “He is not totally fit. He is doing his rehab. We will miss him in the series. Without Rashid, there are a few players…

Pranati Nayak’s victory over Dipa Karmakar in the Vault final on Thursday caught the eye in the National Artistic Gymnastics Championships at the newly built gymnastics facility in the Kalinga Stadium Complex in Bhubaneswar. The 28-year-old Pranati Nayak is a two-time Asian bronze medallist and was India’s sole competitor in the Asian Games gymnastics competition last year. Railways’ Pranati Nayak, a 2020 Olympian, averaged 13.067 points for her two vaults, securing 13.300 and 12.833 respectively. Dipa Karmakar (Tripura) averaged 12.584 after scoring 12.700 and 12.467 respectively. Interestingly, both Pranati Nayak and Dipa Karmakar had scored 13.40 on vault in the…