Bengaluru Torpedoes picked up a dominant 15-6, 15-11, 15-12, win over the Hyderabad Black Hawks in the third season of the RuPay Prime Volleyball League powered by A23 on Monday at the Jawaharlal Nehru Indoor Stadium, Chennai.
Published Date – 4 March 2024, 11:34 PM
Players of Hyderabad Black Hawks and Bengaluru Torpedoes in action during the clash.
Hyderabad: Bengaluru Torpedoes picked up a dominant 15-6, 15-11, 15-12, win over the Hyderabad Black Hawks in the third season of the RuPay Prime Volleyball League powered by A23 on Monday at the Jawaharlal Nehru Indoor Stadium, Chennai. Sethu TR was named the Player of the Match.
Sethu set the tone for Bengaluru Torpedoes from the first minute, rocking Hyderabad’s defence with monstrous serves. When Sahil Kumar threatened with attacks, Srajan Shetty stood tall and strong to deny him with a block. Thomas Heptinstall’s spikes further helped Torpedoes and coach David Lee’s side took an early lead.
While Bengaluru players appeared to be reading each other’s minds, the communication between players in Hyderabad left a lot to be desired. Sahil started attacking well as Hyderabad began asking a few questions. But Sethu’s magic was undeniable on the night, as he made another super serve, and Srajan and Mujeeb made useful blocks to help Bengaluru take control.
Prince’s clever blocks showcased the Hawks’ resistance, while a couple of service errors from Bengaluru further helped Hyderabad. But there was no stopping super server Sethu on the night, who kept scoring points for his side. Srajan made useful blocks and Sethu closed the game a powerful spike to help Bengaluru get the win.
The Deccan Warriors also saw defender Sajid Dhot sent off for two bookable offences as they lost more ground in the I-League title race, falling to their third home defeat of the season.
Published Date – 4 March 2024, 11:06 PM
Players of Sreenidi Deccan and Real Kashmir vie for the ball during the clash.
Hyderabad: Sreenidi Deccan Football Club succumbed to two late goals by Real Kashmir Football Club, going down 2-3 in a Matchweek 17 I-League clash here at the Deccan Arena on Monday.
The Deccan Warriors also saw defender Sajid Dhot sent off for two bookable offences as they lost more ground in the I-League title race, falling to their third home defeat of the season. The corresponding fixture between Sreenidi Deccan and Real Kashmir had ended in a 0-0 draw and the first half showed signs of that being repeated as stoppages and injuries took momentum out of the game.
Neither side was able string a good passing sequence together but the Snow Leopards struck late as forward Gnohere Krizo overpowered Sajid Dhot inside the penalty area and bundled the ball into the back of the net to give his side the lead.
Sreenidi Deccan came back firing on all cylinders in the second half as winger Rilwan Hassan helped them overturn the deficit with a goal and assist. He first equalised in the 58th minute with a tap-in after Lalnuntluanga squared the ball to him inside the box and three minutes later, crossed the ball in for defender Eli Sabia to head home and give Sreenidi Deccan a 2-1 lead.
It seemed the Deccan Warriors would hold on for three points but Sajid’s sending off in the 86th minute changed the whole complexion of the game. From the resulting free-kick, Tariq Mir caught goalkeeper Albino Gomes off guard and the ball flew into the back of the net from 40 yards.
As the game went into stoppage time, Eli Sabia was adjudged to have handled the ball inside the box and Krizo converted the spot kick to win it for Real Kashmir. Sreenidi Deccan remain on 33 points from 17 matches but Real Kashmir have climbed above them to second in the I-League points table with the same points based on the head-to-head record.
Earlier too, Dhoni handed over the captaincy to Jadeja and guided him as a senior player of the team
Published Date – 4 March 2024, 08:07 PM
File Photo
Hyderabad: With only 18 days left for the commencement of the 2024 Indian Premier League (IPL), cricket fans are over the moon with excitement.
The five-time IPL winning captain Mahindra Singh Dhoni, who enthralled his fans with his appearance at Anant Ambani’s pre-wedding bash, but gave them a shocker soon after, when he said in an FB post “Can’t wait for the new season and the new ‘role’. Stay tuned!”
The Chennai Super Kings (CSK) fans are now wondering what the new role could be and are speculating on Dhoni leaving the team’s captaincy.
Earlier too, Dhoni handed over the leadership to Jadeja and guided him as a senior player of the team.
The 2024 IPL is set to kickstart from March 22, and CSK will take on the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) at the Chinnaswamy stadium in the inaugural match. This year’s league is set in two phases in view of the General elections.
According to the latest FIBA Men’s World Ranking, Iran’s national basketball team kept its previous 27th place with 426.9 points.
In the Asia-Pacific region, Australia, New Zealand, and Japan secured the first, second, and third positions, respectively before Iran.
The US team with 784.8 points holds the top position in the world ranking, while Spain and Germany with 773.9 and 759 points respectively are ranked second and third.
The draw ceremony was held at Iran Handball Federation’s headquarters in Tehran, the capital of Iran.
A total of 13 teams from across Asia will be participating in the competition, scheduled to be held in Tehran from Aug. 25 August to Sept. 3.
The teams are divided into three groups of three and one group of four teams.
The draw is as follows:
Group A: Iran, India, Iraq
Group B: Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the UAE
Group C: Korea Republic, Bahrain, Chinese Taipei
Group D: Japan, Kuwait, China, Jordan
This edition of the championship marks the second time that Tehran will be hosting the event, following their successful hosting in 2006.
The defending champions and record titleholders are the Republic of Korea, who clinched victory in 2005, 2014, and 2022.
The competition will also serve as a qualification event for the 11th IHF Men’s Youth (U19) Handball World Championship in Slovenia, scheduled for July/August 2025.
The top five teams from this competition will earn qualification spots for the World Championship.
Man City has now secured a Premier League double over rivals Man Utd for the sixth time, with half of these achieved under Guardiola (also in 2018/19 and 2021/22).
Updated On – 4 March 2024, 12:52 PM
Manchester: A Phil Foden double and Erling Haaland’s stoppage-time strike earned Manchester City a 3-1 turnaround victory over Manchester United to move a point behind leaders Liverpool in Premier League table.
The Pep Guardiola side are now unbeaten in their last 12 Premier League matches.
Man City have completed a Premier League double over rivals Man Utd for a sixth time – with half of these coming under Guardiola (also 2018/19 and 2021/22).
City had fallen behind to a thunderous Marcus Rashford goal on eight minutes – against the run of play – and spent the next 50 minutes or so trying to find a way past a resolute United back-line.
But Foden levelled on 56 minutes with a screamer into the top corner from 20 yards, then scored a delightful second ten minutes from the end of normal time.
Haaland then wrapped up victory with a clinical finish following excellent work by Rodrigo to make it 3-1 in added time.
Up next for City is a huge showdown at Anfield against title-rivals Liverpool on Sunday, while a second consecutive defeat leaves Man Utd 11 points behind fourth-placed Aston Villa.
Boulter secured her first WTA 500 title on Sunday night after defeating Kostyuk in their first encounter, a match that lasted 2 hours and 13 minutes.
Updated On – 4 March 2024, 12:54 PM
San Diego: Katie Boulter of Britain won the second and highest-level WTA Tour title of her career, fighting past No.6 seed Marta Kostyuk of Ukraine 5-7, 6-2, 6-2 to claim the San Diego Open crown.
Boulter needed 2 hours and 13 minutes to power past Kostyuk in their first meeting and notched her first WTA 500 title on Sunday night.
The Briton’s previous title came last summer, when she triumphed in her home country on the grass courts of WTA 250 Nottingham.
With the title triumph, Boulter is projected to hit a new career-high ranking of No.27, shattering her previous career-high of No.48.
All five of Boulter’s victories in San Diego Open have been over Top 50 opposition, increasing her career tally of Top 50 wins from nine to 14 in the span of a week, according to WTA Tour stats.
Boulter is the second Brit to capture a WTA 500 title, joining former World No.4 Johanna Konta, who hoisted WTA 500 trophies at 2016 Stanford and 2017 Sydney.
Sunrisers Hyderabad, the IPL 2016 winners, will open its IPL 2024 campaign on March 23 against two-time champions Kolkata Knight Riders at the Eden Gardens, followed by playing its first home match at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium on March 27 against five-time champions Mumbai Indians.
Published Date – 4 March 2024, 11:43 AM
New Delhi: Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) have appointed Pat Cummins as the captain of the side ahead of the 2024 Indian Premier League (IPL) season, said the franchise through its social media accounts on Monday.
SRH were captained by Aiden Markram in previous two seasons, but didn’t gain any significant success, especially finishing at the bottom of the points table in IPL 2023, having just four wins from 14 matches. Markram, though, successfully led SunRisers Eastern Cape, a sister team of the SRH franchise to the trophy in the first two seasons of the SA20.
But Cummins had a magnificent 2023, which boosted his leadership credentials winning the World Test Championship (WTC), retaining the Ashes in England and claiming a record sixth Men’s ODI World Cup as captain of Australia. It will be the first time Cummins will be captaining a side in the IPL and reunites with Daniel Vettori, the new SRH head coach who also works as an assistant coach for Australia.
He also becomes the second Australian to be SRH’s captain after fellow country-mate David Warner, who led the franchise in 67 matches from 2015 to 2021. In last year’s IPL Auction at Dubai, Cummins was roped in by the franchise for a whopping Rs 20.5 crore, making him the second-most expensive player in the history of the league. Cummins has previously been a part of Delhi Capitals and Kolkata Knight Riders in the IPL.
Sunrisers Hyderabad, the IPL 2016 winners, will open its IPL 2024 campaign on March 23 against two-time champions Kolkata Knight Riders at the Eden Gardens, followed by playing its first home match at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium on March 27 against five-time champions Mumbai Indians.
Captain Meg Lanning’s fifty and a cunning spell of left-arm spin by Jess Jonassen drove Delhi Capitals to a slick 25-run victory over Gujarat Giants in their Women’s Premier League match here on Sunday.
Published Date – 3 March 2024, 11:49 PM
Meg Lanning plays a shot during the WPL match against Gujarat Giants.
Bengaluru: Captain Meg Lanning’s fifty and a cunning spell of left-arm spin by Jess Jonassen drove Delhi Capitals to a slick 25-run victory over Gujarat Giants in their Women’s Premier League match here on Sunday.
Lanning (55, 41b, 6×4, 1×6) was Capitals’ guiding force to an adequate 163 for eight despite a late flurry of wickets. The Giants’ chase never grew wings, ending up with 138 for eight despite Ashleigh Gardner’s well-timed 40 off 31 balls as they crashed to their fourth defeat on the bounce.
Jonassen led Capitals’ bowling with a shrewd spell (3/22) and she received very good support from Radha Yadav (3/20). The win also propelled Delhi to the top of the table with six points. The Gujarat side made a shaky start, conceding a maiden in the very first over to WPL debutant pacer Titas Sadhu.
Their beginning was further marred when experienced pacer Shikha Pandey castled Laura Wolvaardt with a delivery that shaped in that tiny bit to beat her swat. But the Giants too found some flow as captain Beth Mooney and Phoebe Litchfield combined to smash 15 runs in the fourth over bowled by Pandey.
However, it was just an isolated spark as the Giants stumbled against Jonassen. In the fifth over, the Australian spinner jettisoned Mooney and Litchfield in the space of four balls to reduce Giants to 34 for three. Gardner displayed her power while hammering pacer Annabel Sutherland for two fours and a six in the 12th over to make a total of 16 runs.
It might have given a tinge of hope to the Giants but Jonassen snuffed that out when she had Gardner stumped by Taniya Bhatia. Before that Yadav bagged the crucial wickets of Veda Krishnamoorthy and Kathryn Bryce as Gujarat struggled to stitch together any meaningful partnership.
Earlier, Lanning used her experience to pace her innings well and build a couple of good partnerships after Giants opted to field first. Shafali Verma (13, 9b), as usual, flew off the traps with a six and four off left-arm spinner Tanuja Kanwar but her cameo came to an end very soon.
Verma’s uppish flick of pacer Meghana Singh, the most successful Gujarat bowler with a four-wicket haul, went straight to Wolvaardt near backward square leg. The dismissal brought Lanning, who was dropped on 30, and in-form Alice Capsey together. They scored 38 runs for the second wicket, helping Delhi to reach 51 for 1 in the Power Play segment.
Once Capsey departed, an edgy Jemimah Rodrigues (7 off 10) helped Lanning add 47 runs for the third wicket. Lanning shed her low-gear approach during this passage to pull some top shots out of the draw such as a massive hit for six over long-off off Kathryn Bryce.
Lanning reached her fifty in 39 balls but could not stay in the middle for long as her slash off Meghana settled in the hands of D Hemalatha at cover point. The return of Lanning to the dug-out dashed Delhi’s attempt to up the scoring rate as they lost wickets at regular intervals and also failed to fetch a boundary for 24 balls between 15.2 and 19.3 overs. But by then they had put enough runs on the board.
