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Sania confirms divorce with Shoaib, wishes Pakistan cricketer well for new journey

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The revelation comes amid long-standing rumours and speculation surrounding the strained relationship between Malik and Mirza, who got married in April 2010 in the Indian player’s hometown of Hyderabad.

Published Date – 21 January 2024, 11:51 AM


Sania confirms divorce with Shoaib, wishes Pakistan cricketer well for new journey


New Delhi: Sania Mirza’s family on Sunday confirmed that the Indian tennis icon and Shoaib Malik have separated, a day after Pakistani cricketer announced his second marriage with actor Sana Javed.

Their split marks the end of a high-profile union that had generated huge interest among sports lovers from the two countries.

The 41-year-old Malik on Saturday posted his wedding picture with Sana on social media platforms.

“Sania has always kept her personal life away from the public eye. However, today the need has arisen for her to share that Shoaib and she have been divorced for a few months now. She wishes Shoaib well for his new journey ahead!,” read the statement issued by Mirza’s family.

 

“At this sensitive period of her life, we would like to request all fans and well-wishers to refrain from indulging in any speculation and to respect her need for privacy,” the statement added.

The revelation comes amid long-standing rumours and speculation surrounding the strained relationship between Malik and Mirza, who got married in April 2010 in the Indian player’s hometown of Hyderabad.

The rumours gained momentum when Malik recently unfollowed Mirza, 37, on Instagram, a move that further fuelled speculation about their marital discord.

They have a five-year-old son Izaan, who is currently living with Mirza.

Mirza, in a recent Instagram post, had alluded to personal struggles.

“Marriage is hard, Divorce is hard. Choose your hard. Obesity is hard. Being fit is hard, Choose your hard. being in debt is hard. Being financially disciplined is hard. Choose your hard,” she posted in an instagram story.

“Communication is hard. No communicating is hard. Life will never be easy. I will always be hard. But we can choose our hard. Pick wisely.” Celebrated as one of India’s greatest tennis players, Sania announced her retirement from professional tennis last year after a illustrious career spanning two decades.
She won six Grand Slam titles in doubles and mixed doubles even

 

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India Open 2024: Chirag-Satwik cruise into final with dominating victory

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The Indian pair secured a 21-18, 21-14 against Tokyo Olympics bronze medallists Chia and Wooi Yik and progressed to the final of the BWF 750 Series badminton tournament.

Published Date – 21 January 2024, 08:59 AM


India Open 2024: Chirag-Satwik cruise into final with dominating victory


New Delhi: World No.2 men’s doubles pair of Chirag Shetty and Satwiksairaj Rankireddy recorded a stellar victory in what was a repeat of the Asian Game 2022 semi-finals against Aaron Chia and Soh Wooi Yik of Malaysia in the India Open 2024 at the Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium here on Saturday.

The Indian pair secured a 21-18, 21-14 against Tokyo Olympics bronze medallists Chia and Wooi Yik and progressed to the final of the BWF 750 Series badminton tournament.

The first game was a neck-to-neck affair with both pairs performing at their absolute best. With the game tied at 17-17, Chirag-Satwik scored three straight points to surge ahead and take the lead in the tie.

The Malaysian pair came back with renewed energy in the second game to take a 10-6 advantage.

But the Commonwealth Games 2022 gold medallists mounted a comeback and scored five straight points to overturn a 10-13 deficit. From that point, Chirag-Satwik dominated their opponents and after winning a 29-shot rally, claimed the victory.

The former champions will face reigning world champions Kang Min Hyuk and Seo Seung Jae of South Korea in the final.

Expressing his thoughts on the win Chirag Shetty said, “It was a good win today. Going into the match, we knew that it will be a tough game because we always had some really close games. But luckily in the end, we stayed calm and eventually won. The crowd support has been tremendous. It feels really, special and I hope to see many more people coming in huge numbers tomorrow as well. Last year, we couldn’t complete the tournament, but this time playing in the final, against the Koreans who are a formidable duo, definitely it will be a good match. We aim for the title.” In the men’s singles semi-finals, 2023 World Championships bronze medallist HS Prannoy went down fighting against the World No. 2 Shi Yu Qui of China and suffered a 15-21, 5-21 defeat.

The two shuttlers were closely matched in the first game. However, after Prannoy leveled the score at 14-14 after winning a 37-shot rally, his Chinese opponent scored four successive points to claim the first game.

With his smooth movement and efficient smashes, the Asian Games 2022 silver medallist maintained his tempo in the second game to seal the victory and reach his second successive final in a week.

Shi Yu Qui will face Hong Kong’s Lee Chuek Yiu, who stunned 2023 World Championships silver medallist Kodai Naraoka of Japan in a thrilling 21-13, 15-21, 21-19 win, in the final.

Earlier, Tokyo Olympics gold medallist Chen Yu Fei of China and silver medallist Tai Tzu-Ying of Chinese Taipei registered comprehensive victories to set up a highly anticipated women’s singles final.

World No.2 Chen Yu Fei was at the top of her game as she prevailed by 21-13, 21-18 against compatriot Wang Zhi Yi while fourth seed Tai Tzu-Ying defeated Yeo Jia Min of Singapore 21-13, 21-18 in 37 minutes.

In women’s doubles, Mayu Matsumoto and Wakana Nagahara of Japan overcame Hangzhou Asian Games silver medallists Baek Ha Na and Lee So Hee of South Korea 21-13, 21-16.

They will take on World Championships 2023 bronze medallists Zhang Shu Xian and Zheng Yu of China who defeated compatriots Li Wen Mei and Liu Xuan Xuan 19-21, 21-17, 21-18.

In mixed doubles, former World champions Dechapol Puavaranukroh and Sapsiree Taerattanachai of Thailand recorded a hard-fought 18-21, 21-15, 21-19 win over Ye Hong Wei and Lee Chia Hsin of Chinese Taipei.

Reigning Asian Champions Jiang Zhen Bang and Wei Ya Xin of China will take on the Thai pair in the final after packing off Kim Won Ho and Jeong Na Eun of South Korea 21-19, 21-18.

Sports

Bahrain snatches victory over Malaysia in Asian Cup

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In the second round of the group stage of the 2023 Asian Cup, the national teams of Bahrain and Malaysia faced each other in Group E.

Both teams entered the match without any points as they lost their first-round matches. Bahrain was defeated by South Korea with a score of 1-3, while Malaysia suffered a crushing defeat to Jordan with a score of 0-4, according to Daily Sports.

In the first half, Juan Antonio Pizzi’s wards had the upper hand, while Malaysia tried to play on the counterattack. It’s worth noting that there were very few genuinely dangerous moments.

In the second half, Bahrain was closer to scoring a goal, and in the 96th minute, they achieved their desired result. The precise shot was credited to the right winger Ali Madan.

MP/PR

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Pawan Sehrawat masterclass leads Telugu Titans to huge win at home

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They inflicted the first All Out in the 10th minute of the game to take a 15-9 lead and never let go after that.

Published Date – 20 January 2024, 11:05 PM


Pawan Sehrawat masterclass leads Telugu Titans to huge win at home


Hyderabad: Raiders Pawan Sehrawat and Omkar Patil’s best efforts led Telugu Titans to their first home win and season’s second win as they thrashed UP Yoddhas 49-32 in the Pro Kabaddi League match at the Gachibowli Indoor Stadium, Hyderabad on Saturday.

It was a clash between two stars Pawan Sehraawat and Pardeep Narwal, skippers of Titans and Yoddhas respectively but the former took the day’s honours with 16 points to Pardeep’s 10. High-flyer Pawan collected the first super raid with three points with the score in balance at 5-5 in the first six minutes.

Soon after, Yoddhas endured their first All Out with the Titans skipper’s super raid. The home side which has been struggling all season looked a different team. They took a five-point lead at the first strategic timeout.

Titans’ Omkar Patil joined the party with a super raid with four-point raid and later caught Yoddhas’ Ashu Singh in his next in a crucial do-or-die raid as the home side ended the first half with a comfortable 24-16 with the crowd anticipating the much-awaited win.

With just a few minutes into the second half, Yoddhas faced their second All Out that gave a 28-17 lead in Titans’ favour. A third All Out saw hosts take a 39-21 that almost shut the door on the visitors. While Omkar shone bright collecting two super raids next, the Titans defence too put on a show with Sandeep Dhull leading the defence that helped them clinch a big win.

 

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Ashu Singh scores 17 points as Dabang Delhi KC beat U Mumba 39-33

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It was a topsy-turvy contest to begin as both sides traded the lead frequently.

Published Date – 20 January 2024, 09:54 PM


Ashu Singh scores 17 points as Dabang Delhi KC beat U Mumba 39-33


Hyderabad: Dabang Delhi KC returned to winning ways as they earned a 39-33 win over U Mumba in the Pro Kabaddi League match at the Gachibowli Indoor Stadium on Saturday. Ashu Malik played a captain’s role for Dabang Delhi KC again as he bagged an impressive 17 raid points, while Guman Singh was U Mumba’s key performer with 13 raid points.

It was a topsy-turvy contest to begin as both sides traded the lead frequently. U Mumba inched ahead to lead 9-5, but then Dabang Delhi KC struck back through some resolute defending.

Vishal Bhardwaj came off the bench to execute 2 Super Tackles and Dabang Delhi KC were back in business. However, it was U Mumba who grabbed an All Out in the dying stages of the half to take a slender lead. But Dabang Delhi KC found a way back into the game via a multi-point raid from Ashu that saw both sides go into the break tied at 16-16.

Dabang Delhi KC upped the ante in the 2nd half as Ashu grabbed 3 quick points before Pranay Rane stepped into the lobbies for an All Out and the team from Delhi took the lead. They led 22-17 with 3 minutes played in the 2nd half.

Dabang Delhi KC calmly extended their lead and it looked like they were running away with the game until Guman produced a marvellous Super Raid. He escaped the clutches of four defenders to give his side a fighting chance at 28-25.

That raid also brought up his 6th Super 10 of the season. With 10 minutes left, Dabang Delhi KC were down to 3 men and U Mumba sniffed a comeback. They made an inspired substitution as Heidarali Ekrami came off the bench to pick up a couple of crucial points to reduce the deficit to just 3 points at 33-36, but an excellent Super Tackle from Manjeet in the final minute saw Dabang Delhi KC snap up a thrilling victory.

Sports

Iran comes 2nd at 2024 IWBF AOZ

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Team Melli had previously lost to Australia 69-60 in the tournament.

Iran had defeated South Korea, Thailand, Japan, China, and Afghanistan in its previous matches.

South Korea won the bronze medal match after the team emerged victorious over Japan.  

Iran was recently awarded the title of the “2023 Best Asian Team Performance” by the Asian Paralympic Committee (AsPC).

The competition served as a qualification for the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games and the winner Australia qualified for the Paralympics.

The 2024 IWBF Asia Oceania Championships in men’s and women’s divisions were held in Bangkok, Thailand, from January 12 to 20.

MP/TSN

Sports

Esitha inspires Care Football Academy to win

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Eistha opened the scoring in the 13th minute and completed her hat-trick in 36th minute and added another one in the 56th minute.

Published Date – 20 January 2024, 07:34 PM


Esitha inspires Care Football Academy to win

Eistha opened the scoring in the 13th minute and completed her hat-trick in 36th minute and added another one in the 56th minute.

Hyderabad: Esitha scored four goals to lead Care Football Academy to 4-0 win over Twin Cities FC in the ongoing Telangana Football Association’s Khelo India Girls Under-17 Football League held at MJPBCWRSJDC College, Gajwel, Siddipet on Saturday.

Eistha opened the scoring in the 13th minute and completed her hat-trick in 36th minute and added another one in the 56th minute. In the other matches, Telangana Sports School downed Gajwel FC 2-0 as Nagma and Siri scored a goal each for the winners.

Aruna’s 16th minute strike led Deccan Dynamos edge past Hyderabad Women’s FC to a 1-0 victory. Results: Care Football Academy 4 (Esitha 4) bt Twin Cities FC 0, Telangana Sports School 2 (Nagma 1, Siri 1) bt Gajwel FC 0, Deccan Dynamos 1 ( Aruna 1) bt Hyderabad Womens FC 0.

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Daniil Medvedev moves into fourth round in Australian Open

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The World No. 3 will next play Portugal’s Nuno Borges, who claimed a shock four-set 6-7(3), 6-4, 6-2, 7-6(6) win over in-form 13th seed Grigor Dimitrov.

Updated On – 20 January 2024, 07:35 PM


Daniil Medvedev moves into fourth round in Australian Open

Daniil Medvedev, of Russia, returns a shot to Carlos Alcaraz, of Spain, during the mens singles semifinals of the U.S. Open tennis championships. Photo: AP/PTI

Melbourne: World No. 3 Daniil Medvedev sailed into the fourth round of the Australian Open after a straight-set 6-3, 6-4, 6-3 triumph over Felix Auger-Aliassime in the third round on Saturday.

Throughout the first set in particular, Aliassime was hitting a bigger ball than Medvedev on a regular basis, but the 2021 US Open champion was content to take the tempo, return his easy, flat groundstrokes, and wait for the Canadian to miss. Medvedev committed 25 unforced errors compared to 43 by Felix.

The World No. 3 will next play Portugal’s Nuno Borges, who claimed a shock four-set 6-7(3), 6-4, 6-2, 7-6(6) win over in-form 13th seed Grigor Dimitrov.

“It was tough for me, especially after the last match I had. It felt tough when I ran so I tried to give him a tough shot so he couldn’t run me so much… I wasn’t feeling 100 per cent but I tried to make my best work possible,” Medvedev stated as quoted by ATP.

Borges had never progressed past the second round of a tour-level event prior to this week. He is now only the second player from his nation to advance past the fourth round of a Grand Slam competition (Joao Sousa, twice).

“I still can’t believe it, what a match. I never expected to be here in the second week of the Australian Open, who would have thought!” Borges said of the result in his first ATP Head2Head meeting with the Bulgarian.

“Maybe in the third set when I got the break I thought, ‘Holy crap, I can actually win this’. I was testing my limits, testing him. Anything can happen in a tennis match and today was a true example of that,” he added.

Elsewhere, Cameron Norrie registered an upset victory against 11th seed Casper Ruud 6-4, 6-7(7), 6-4, 6-3 to claim a confidence-boosting win and reach the fourth round at Melbourne Park for the first time.

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Hussain stars in Telangana’s win over Malaysia at National T-20 Cricket Championship

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Riding on captain Ahmed Hussain’s 58-run knock, Telangana defeated Malaysia by nine runs in Group-B league clash of the 43rd Shri Rajiv Gandhi National T-20 Cricket Championship

Published Date – 20 January 2024, 07:15 PM


Hussain stars in Telangana’s win over Malaysia at National T-20 Cricket Championship

Ahmed Hussain

Hyderabad: Riding on captain Ahmed Hussain’s 58-run knock, Telangana defeated Malaysia by nine runs in Group-B league clash of the 43rd Shri Rajiv Gandhi National T-20 Cricket Championship organised by the Cricket Federation of Hyderabad played at Lal Bahadur International Cricket Stadium, Hyderabad on Saturday.

Batting first, Hussain led from the front hitting eight boundaries and two sixes in his 43-ball knock. However, other batters failed to contribute for the home side as they posted 144/9 in 20 overs. Muqri Jafrie impressed with the bowl for the visitors picking up three wickets. Later, the Telangana side restricted Malaysia to 135/9.

Brief Scores: Group – B league: Telangana 144/9 in 20 overs (Ahmed Hussain 58; Muqri Jafrie 3/18) bt Malaysia 135/9 in 20 overs ( Amzar 30; Dhairya 2/8, Adarsh 2/16, Ameer 2/11 ).

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Australian Open: Alcaraz cruises into fourth round; Azarenka rises to Ostapenko challenge

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Carlos Alcaraz cruised into the fourth round of the Australian Open when his opponent, Shang Juncheng, retired early in the third set of their third-round encounter

Published Date – 20 January 2024, 03:02 PM


Australian Open: Alcaraz cruises into fourth round; Azarenka rises to Ostapenko challenge

Carlos Alcaraz of Spain plays a backhand return to Shang Juncheng of China during their third round match at the Australian Open tennis championships at Melbourne Park, Melbourne. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)

Melbourne: Carlos Alcaraz cruised into the fourth round of the Australian Open when his opponent, Shang Juncheng, retired early in the third set of their third-round encounter on Saturday.

The No. 2 was leading the 18-year-old 6-1, 6-1, 1-0 when Shang, who had his right thigh heavily strapped from the start, called it a day after just 66 minutes.

“It’s not the way you want to move on,” said the Spaniard, who missed last year’s event through injury himself. “Last year, I was watching the matches from my couch, wishing to be in the second week.

“This is my first time in the second week at the Australian Open and it feels special.” Alcaraz will play Miomir Kecmanovic, the Serbian who saved a match point as he beat last year’s semifinalist Tommy Paul 6-4, 3-6, 2-6, 7-6 (7), 6-0.

American Paul led by two sets to one on Margaret Court Arena and had a match point in the fourth-set tie-break but Kecmanovic levelled and then ripped through the deciding set for victory.

“Honestly, I have no idea,” Kecmanovic said of his victory. “I guess it was just supposed to be my day today. I had a bit more luck and I played some fantastic tennis at the end. I’m really happy to be in the fourth round again.

No. 9 Hubert Hurkacz saw off No. 21 Ugo Humbert 3-6, 6-1, 7-6 (4), 6-3 to reach the fourth round for the second year in a row. He will play the wild-card entry from France, Arthur Cazaux, who beat 28th-ranked Tallon Griekspoor 6-3, 6-3, 6-1.

Two-time former champion Victoria Azarenka took out 11th-ranked Jelena Ostapenko 6-1, 7-5 to make the pre-quarterfinals for the seventh time.

“I like a challenge,” the Belarusian said. “I really think you can’t run away, you have to face it. It’s scary, it’s difficult, but it’s something you want to acknowledge and go through.” Azarenka’s next opponent will be Ukrainian qualifier Dayana Yastremska, who equalled her best Grand Slam performance with a 6-2, 2-6 6-1 win over 27th-ranked Emma Navarro.

Yastremska was coming off first-round exits in her previous seven Grand Slam appearances and hadn’t been to the second week of a major since reaching the round of 16 at Wimbledon in 2019.

“I felt pretty nervous,” said Yastremska, who hit 36 winners. “In the second set, I felt a little bit of pain in my neck and thought I might have to crack it but didn’t want to do it myself.

“I told myself just don’t be too focused on your neck in the third set because it really takes my attention away. I just told myself to enjoy.” She will next play Oceane Dodin, who beat Clara Burel 6-2, 6-4 in a match between two French women.

Sloane Stephens, the 2017 US Open champion and a runner-up at Roland Garros the following year, lost 6-7 (8), 6-1, 6-4 to Anna Kalinskaya in a 2-hour, 45-minute match on Kia Arena.

No. 26 Jasmine Paolini reached the fourth round of a major for the first time with a 7-6 (1), 6-4 win over Anna Blinkova, who had knocked out No. 3 Elena Rybakina in the previous round.

In the opener on Rod Laver Arena, Zheng Qinwen edged fellow Chinese player Wang Yafan 6-4, 2-6, 7-6 (8) in a match tiebreaker to reach the fourth round in Australia for the first time. The 12th-seeded Zheng made it to the US Open quarterfinals last year.

The Zheng-Wang match lasted 2:40. Zheng had a chance to serve for the match at 5-4 in the third, but was unable to convert, and needed two match points to clinch it in the tiebreaker.

Wang eventually netted a tough backhand volley to end a 25-shot rally, the longest of the match, and the pair shook hands above the net.

“That was really difficult tiebreaker. We gave our best,” Zheng said, thanking Wang and saying it was an honour for their match to be on the main court at Melbourne Park. “She never gives up. She always gets the ball back. I felt a lot of pressure in this match.” Zheng said she was motivated by watching Li Na win the Australian Open title in 2014.

“Of course, I was sitting there in front of TV watching from the beginning to the end,” she said. “That final — I’ve watched that more than 10 times.”