Virat Kohli. | Photo Credit: K BHAGYA PRAKASH Virat Kohli does not require the “captaincy title” to be in charge because of his natural penchant for leadership and it will benefit new skipper Rajat Patidar, reckons Mo Bobat, the team director of Royal Challengers Bengaluru. Patidar was on Thursday unveiled as the RCB captain ahead … Read more
People attend the inauguration of the National Bank Stadium after the completion of renovation works ahead of ICC Champions Trophy 2025 tournament in Karachi, Pakistan February 11, 2025. | Photo Credit: Reuters Q: What was the tournament formerly called? A: ICC Knockout Trophy Q: Which is the format played in the tournament? A: ODI Q: … Read more
RCB’s Rajat Patidar. File | Photo Credit: MURALI KUMAR K Royal Challenger’s Bangalore (RCB) named Rajat Patidar as its new captain for the upcoming 2025 Indian Premier League season on Thursday (February 13, 2025). Former RCB skipper and star batsman Virat Kohli in a video message on X said, “Myself and the other team members … Read more
India’s wicketkeeper K.L. Rahul takes the catch of England’s Tom Banton during the 3rd ODI match, at Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Wednesday, February 12, 2025. | Photo Credit: ANI Fielding coach T. Dilip said it was “incredibly satisfying” to watch the Indian team diving and darting to take incredible catches and stop runs … Read more
India Head Coach Gautam Gambhir. File | Photo Credit: Getty Images Gautam Gambhir comes across as someone who always has the bigger picture in mind. On Wednesday (February 12, 2025), India hammered England by 142 runs to sweep the ODI series 3-0 but the head coach hardly cracked a smile in the post-match media briefing, … Read more
At the Chennai International Airport a few days ago, a gaggle of television cameras set up shop and began the usual drill — checking all equipment, dragging the worn-down podium into position and strategically arranging microphones to best display their organisations’ logos. An inevitable guessing game followed. Whose arrival was the preparation for? Was it … Read more
Shubman Gill hammered his seventh century as India thrashed England in the third and final ODI in Ahmedabad on Wednesday. | Photo Credit: VIJAY SONEJI The Indian team celebrates the series win. | Photo Credit: VIJAY SONEJI Perception matters. It’s not just about winning matches but also how you win them. On Wednesday at the … Read more
File photo of D. Gukesh | Photo Credit: PTI World champion D Gukesh will have his task cut out as he looks to stage a comeback against Fabiano Caruana of the USA in the Freestyle Grand Slam chess tournament in Hamburg. Gukesh suffered a rare setback in normal time control on Sunday, losing to Caruana … Read more
Despite the absence of P.V. Sindhu, India is expected to perform well with experience player like Ashwini Ponnappa who is pairing with Tanisha Crasto at the Badminton Asia Mixed Team championship which starts at Qingdao on February 11, 2025. File | Photo Credit: Shiv Kumar Pushpakar Without the services of an injured PV Sindhu, India … Read more
Mohammed Azharuddeen and Salman Nizar celebrate after Kerala secured a spot in the Ranji Trophy semifinal. | Photo Credit: EMMANUAL YOGINI Kerala players and support staff cheer the team’s batters on the final day of the Ranji Trophy quarterfinal against Jammu and Kashmir in Pune on Wednesday. | Photo Credit: EMMANUAL YOGINI It was a … Read more
England’s Adil Rashid celebrates with Phil Salt after they took the wicket of India’s Virat Kohli in the third and final ODI between India and England at the Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad, Gujarat on February 12, 20254. | Photo Credit: Reuters England skipper Jos Buttler won the toss and opted to field against India in … Read more
A file photo of Afghanistan spinner A.M. Ghazanfa. | Photo Credit: Getty Images/ICC Teenage Afghanistan off-spinner AM Ghazanfar has been ruled out of both the ICC Champions Trophy and the IPL due to a lower back fracture that will keep him on the sidelines for at least four months, the country’s cricket board announced on … Read more
Australia’s Spencer Johnson celebrates the wicket of Sri Lanka’s Kamindu Mendis during the first ODI cricket match between Sri Lanka and Australia in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Wednesday, Feb. 12, 2025. | Photo Credit: AP Australia’s bowling attack took charge as they removed the top batting order of Sri Lanka in the first innings of the … Read more
Jalen Hurts #1 of the Philadelphia Eagles hands the Vince Lombardi Trophy to head coach Nick Sirianni after beating the Kansas City Chiefs 40-22 to win Super Bowl LIX at Caesars Superdome on February 9, 2025 in New Orleans, Louisiana | Photo Credit: Getty Images via AFP The Philadelphia Eagles earned their second Super Bowl … Read more
Australia’s Pat Cummins, right, and Mitchell Starc. File | Photo Credit: AP Australia fast bowler Mitchell Starc has withdrawn from the Champions Trophy for personal reasons, leaving the squad without its three frontline quicks for the ODI tournament in Pakistan and the United Arab Emirates. Starc’s withdrawal comes after pace stalwarts Pat Cummins and Josh … Read more
Jasprit Bumrah. File | Photo Credit: K.R. Deepak India’s pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah has been ruled out of the upcoming ICC Champions Trophy due to a lower back injury, the BCCI said on Tuesday (February 11, 2025), putting to rest all the speculation over his participation in the premier tournament. The senior men’s team selection … Read more
England might be struggling against India on the field of play, but Indians with deep pockets and an abiding, almost cliched interest in the game are set to revive English cricket. Owners of IPL teams and IT billionaires are pumping close to half a billion pounds into the domestic game, allowing counties to pay off … Read more
Making it count: Nagwaswalla was penetrative with an older ball that was inclined to reverse swing. | Photo Credit: File Photo: K. MURALI KUMAR Gujarat advanced to the Ranji Trophy semifinals for the first time since the 2019-20 season after thumping Saurashtra by an innings and 98 runs at the Niranjan Shah Stadium, here on Tuesday. … Read more
Sai Kishore has stressed on the need for his players get better. | Photo Credit: R.V. MOORTHY Tamil Nadu skipper R. Sai Kishore minced no words when saying that the team needs to improve its performances in away conditions after crashing out of the Ranji Trophy with a humiliating 198-run defeat to Vidarbha in the … Read more
As Saurashtra bowed out of the Ranji Trophy with a quarterfinal loss to Gujarat at the Niranjan Shah Stadium on Tuesday, it was also the end of the road for Sheldon Jackson after a successful career in domestic cricket. The 38-year-old had his mother, wife and two kids watching from the stands when the fourth … Read more
Rohit en route his match-winning hundred at Cuttack. | Photo Credit: K.R. DEEPAK Self-advocacy is an essential trait in elite sportspersons. When there is a downturn in form, when the critical press sharpens its pens and fans question their stars’ worth, it is this quality that’s the beleaguered athlete’s best friend. Over the course of … Read more
The triumphant Kerala team members. | Photo Credit: Special arrangement Kerala defeated host Uttarakhand by a lone goal and won the National Games men’s football title after 28 years at Haldwani on Friday. S. Gokul scored the match-winner in the 53rd minute. Kerala last won the gold in 1997. It finished runner-up in 2022 and … Read more
England has been outplayed in the series so far. | Photo Credit: Getty Images In early January, Indian cricket was in doldrums. The Test team had just lost its second straight series (1-3 away to Australia after 0-3 to New Zealand at home); its premier batters were woefully out of form and its best bowlers … Read more
Deepika Kumari of Jharkhand won the women’s individual recurve gold at the 38th National Games in Dehradun on Thursday. | Photo Credit: RITU RAJ KONWAR Juyel Sarker of West Bengal claimed the men’s individual recurve gold. | Photo Credit: RITU RAJ KONWAR West Bengal’s Juyel Sarkar surprised Olympian Tarundeep Rai and won the men’s individual … Read more
Vidarbha entered the knockout stages of the Ranji Trophy as the best among the eight teams (40 points), having dominated the group stages with six wins out of seven games. Over the last four days, the two-time champion lived up to its billing after producing a clinical performance to thrash Tamil Nadu by 198 runs … Read more
Jackson bids adieu to the game after scoring 7283 runs in 106 First-Class matches. | Photo Credit: File photo: PTI Beyond the immediate despondency of defeat for Saurashtra in the Ranji Trophy quarterfinal against Gujarat at the Niranjan Shah Stadium on Tuesday, there was a whirlwind of emotions for Sheldon Jackson to experience as he … Read more
Services’ Niraj Kumar is all smiles after his remarkable win in the 50m Rifle 3-Position at the 38th National Games in Dehradun on Thursday, February 6, 2025. | Photo Credit: RITU RAJ KONWAR Haryana’s Suruchi Phogat and Parmod won the 10m Air Pistol mixed team gold in the 38th National Games at Trishul Shooting Range … Read more
With Champions Trophy in February followed by World Test Championship final in June, former South African skipper Graeme Smith believes the Proteas can end their ICC trophy drought in 2025. | Photo Credit: Getty Images Former captain Graeme Smith is optimistic that South Africa will end its prolonged wait for an ICC trophy this year, … Read more
Shafali Verma | Photo Credit: Vijay Soneji Delhi Capitals’ skipper Meg Lanning on Tuesday (February 11, 2025) hoped explosive India opener Shafali Verma will carry her recent rich vein of form in domestic cricket into the third season of the Women’s Premier League starting on Friday (February 14, 2025). Shafali, who was dropped from the … Read more
