Germany face crunch Sweden clash as Belgium eye knockouts

24/06/2018
Sochi: Germany can ill afford another slip-up when they take on Sweden at the World Cup today, as the defending champions attempt to follow Brazil's lead by belatedly springing into life. Joachim Loew's side slumped to a 1-0 defeat against Mexico in their opening Group F match, paying the price for a calamitous first half in a performance that drew stinging, widespread criticism. Lothar Matthaeus, the 1990 World Cup-winning captain, said he hadn't seen a Germany team "so weak at a big tourname...

Chechen strongman makes Egypt’s Salah honorary citizen

24/06/2018
Moscow: After his team crashed out of the World Cup, Egypt's star player Mohamed Salah has won a consolation prize in the form of honorary citizenship of Chechnya. Chechen strongman Ramzan Kadyrov wrote on Telegram that he had presented the Liverpool star with the honorary title while hosting a dinner for the Egypt team, whose World Cup training base is in the Chechen capital Grozny. "Mohamed Salah is an honorary citizen of Chechnya! That's right!" Kadyrov wrote late Friday. "Tonight I signe...

Sonia, Mandeep in final; Shiva takes bronze at Mongolian boxing tourney

24/06/2018
New Delhi: World silver-medallist Sonia Lather (57kg) and Mandeep Jangra were among the finalists but Shiva Thapa (60kg) signed off with a bronze medal in a mixed first semifinal session for India at the Ulaanbaatar Cup boxing tournament in Mongolia today. Also making the final was Lovlina Borgohain (69kg), a gold-medallist at the India Open earlier this year. Ending with bronze medals were Shiva and Bina Devi Koijam (48kg), the latter a direct entrant into the last-four stage owing to the sm...

Suranga Lakmal to captain Sri Lanka in place of banned Dinesh Chandimal

24/06/2018
COLOMBO: Sri Lanka on Saturday named Suranga Lakmal as skipper for the potentially series-saving third Test against the West Indies after Dinesh Chandimal lost his appeal against a one-match ban for ball tampering. "Lakmal was appointed as the captain, in the absence of Dinesh Chandimal," Sri Lanka Cricket said in a brief statement, without commenting on Chandimal's case. The West Indies are 1-0 up in the series with the final match, the first ever day-night Test in the Caribbean, due to begin...

Pele memories live on as Honda embraces ‘final’ World Cup

24/06/2018
Kazan: Japan icon Keisuke Honda's dream of winning the World Cup began when, as a six-year-old, his father showed him footage of Brazilian legend Pele on an old VCR. And although restricted to a substitute appearance so far in what is his third, and almost certainly final campaign, the former AC Milan star has not given up on that unlikely dream becoming reality. "I'm feeling that this World Cup is my final one," Honda said at the team's training base in Kazan on Friday. "I'm 32 years old an...

F1 hopeful of Silverstone deal after Spa renewal

24/06/2018
LE CASTELLET (France): Formula One bosses are hopeful that a deal can be reached with Silverstone to keep the British Grand Prix on the calendar after next year's race, having agreed an extension with Belgium. Silverstone hosted the first championship grand prix in 1950 but the circuit's owners last year triggered a break clause in the current contract which means 2019 is the last race unless new terms are reached. "Silverstone is part of the foundation of this sport," Formula One's commercia...

YoYo fitness Test is here to stay: Ravi Shastri

24/06/2018
NEW DELHI: There has been huge hype surrounding the YoYo test, a mandatory parameter set by the Indian team management for a place in the national team. The recent instances of players failing fitness tests and being subsequently left out of the national squad has only proved how significant the entire phenomena is for the BCCI, something that Ravi Shastri, coach of the Indian cricket team, confirmed. A day before the Indian cricket team leaves for an 81-day long tour of England, Shastri, a st...

Belgium face Tunisia at World Cup with eye on England

23/06/2018
MOSCOW: Belgium take on Tunisia on Saturday with their eyes set on the knockout round of the World Cup but fearful that star forward Eden Hazard is set for another bruising encounter. The Belgians want to win at the Spartak Stadium in Moscow to avoid making their final group game against England on June 28 a make-or-break qualification affair. The Red Devils opened their account in Russia with a 3-0 win over Panama on Monday, when Romelu Lukaku netted twice, but Hazard was tightly marked and ...

India have world’s best spinners to trouble England: Kumble

23/06/2018
Chennai: Indian team boasts of world's best spinners and it has enough experience in both bowling and batting to outwit hosts England during the upcoming series, said former coach Anil Kumble. "We have a great side and an all-round side. In bowling we have the experience and bowlers who can take 20 wickets consistently. If you look at the batting line-up, it has a lot of experience as well," he said at an event here. "On average, all the players have played close to 50 Tests. That adds a lot ...

Two new balls in ODIs is recipe for disaster: Tendulkar

23/06/2018
new delhi: Concerned by a spate of run fests recently, Indian cricket icon Sachin Tendulkar has criticised the use of two new balls in ODIs, saying it is "a perfect recipe for disaster". Mostly a reticent commentator, Tendulkar shared his point of view after watching England batsmen go on a rampage against Australia in the last two ODIs. "Having 2 new balls in one day cricket is a perfect recipe for disaster as each ball is not given the time to get old enough to reverse. We haven't seen rever...

Athletics: Mike Rodgers speeds to year’s fastest 100 metres

23/06/2018
new delhi: Veteran American sprinter Mike Rodgers cruised to the year`s fastest 100 meters when the 33-year-old clocked 9.89 seconds in qualifying at the U.S. championships in Iowa. The performance, in what Rodgers said were new shoes, stole the show from America`s younger generation of sprinters on the first day of the meeting that will decide the United States team for next month`s Athletics World Cup in London. "I felt like I could have run faster," said Rodgers, who has been dogged by inj...

Australia’s Mennie first player ‘subbed out’ of English county game

23/06/2018
London: Australia paceman Joe Mennie became the first player to be substituted out of a match in English cricket's County Championship under new concussion guidelines after suffering a blow to the head. The 29-year-old Mennie was withdrawn after bowling for Lancashire away to Worcestershire in a First Division match when a drive from opposing overseas player Martin Guptill, the New Zealand batsman, hit him on the bounce as he followed through. Mennie, whose lone Test appearance for Australia ...

Windies hope night time is right time to win back fans

23/06/2018
Bridgetown: West Indies join the day-night Test match revolution tomorrow, hoping the innovation will win back legions of fans who have turned their backs on the under-performing Caribbean side. The third Test of the series against Sri Lanka at Kensington Oval in Barbados will be the 10th day-night affair since it debuted in 2015 when Australia hosted New Zealand in Adelaide. Since that time, three more day-night Tests have been staged in Australia, two in Dubai, in an effort to entice expatr...

Hamilton admits FIFA World Cup 2018 may distract him at French GP

23/06/2018
France: Lewis Hamilton will risk losing his focus on this Sunday’s French Grand Prix by watching England play a World Cup match shortly before the race. The four-time world champion said he will try to do two things at once prepare for the race and support England when they play Panama. “It’s going to be a little harder to focus on the race because we will be watching it,” he told reporters. “The game will be on TV here and l am sure my guys will try to keep an eye on both things at the same...

Messi feels pain as World Cup dream turns to nightmare

23/06/2018
MOSCOW: Lionel Messi sloped off down the tunnel in Nizhny Novgorod with his head bowed, knowing Argentina face the humiliation of a group-stage exit at the World Cup in Russia. The Barcelona star was silenced by a far superior Croatia side in a brutal 0-3 defeat that left the South Americans needing an unlikely series of results to keep their hopes of reaching the knockout stages alive. The World Cup is likely to lose the man who along with Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo has dominated and defin...

Hussamuddin, 2 others enter semis of Chemistry Cup in Germany

23/06/2018
new delhi: Commonwealth Games bronze-medallist Mohammed Hussamuddin (56kg) was among the three Indian boxers to make the semifinals but two others lost in the quarters of the Chemistry Cup in Halle, Germany. In bouts held late last night, Hussamuddin, former national champion Madan Lal (56kg) and Narender (+91kg) advanced to the last-four stage, thereby assuring themselves of at least a bronze medal each. Hussamuddin, a two-time medal-winner at the prestigious Strandja Memorial, defeated Jord...

FIFA World Cup 2018: Spain keep their hopes alive with 1-0 win over Iran

22/06/2018
KAZAN: A scrappy second-half goal by Diego Costa broke a Persian stonewall and lifted Spain to a 1-0 win over a courageous Iran in a nerve-jangling World Cup clash. Costa claimed his third goal of the tournament in the 54th minute at Kazan Arena but the striker hardly knew about it, the ball deflecting off his legs from an attempted clearance by hapless Iran defender Ramin Rezaeian. The result left Spain joint top of their group with Portugal on four points, with Iran close behind on three go...

Asian Games more competitive than Commonwealth Games: Ponappa

22/06/2018
new delhi: Ashwini Ponnappa is eyeing a podium finish at the upcoming Asian Games but the ace shuttler conceded that the Continental games are more competitive than the Commonwealth Games with some top badminton nations in the fray. Ponappa, a Red Bull athlete, had played a crucial role in India winning its first ever gold medal in a team event at the Commonwealth Games early this year. "At the international level there are no easy games as every team has quality players but yes Asian Games a...

Om Prakash Mitharwal, Vijay Kumar win twin gold in KSS Memorial Shooting Championship

22/06/2018
new delhi: Commonwealth Games 2018 bronze-medalist Om Prakash Mitharwal edged past 2010 CWG gold medalist Omkar Singh by just one point to clinch the gold in the 50m free pistol category at the KSS Memorial Shooting Championship in New Delhi Omkar, serving in the Navy, stayed hot on Om Prakash’s heels to score 559 but the army man stayed calm when it mattered most to score 560 and took the first spot on the podium. Another Army man Gurpal Singh, was also not far behind as he bagged the bronze...

Yo-Yo test pass marks for Indian players lowest among top teams

22/06/2018
new delhi: All the brouhaha over the Yo-Yo test for the Team India players falls flat if one were to look at the pass marks of other teams. The score prescribed by the Indian team management and the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is, after all, very basic, the lowest among the top teams of world cricket. Even the Pakistan team, no great advertisement for fitness standards not long ago, has kept a very high benchmark. Mirror has tried to find out the minimum marks of most teams ...

FIFA World Cup 2018: Beckham tips England to face Argentina in final

22/06/2018
BEIJING: Former captain David Beckham has tipped England to play Lionel Messi's Argentina in the World Cup final, reflecting rising optimism about the Three Lions' chances after a positive start in Russia. Beckham was speaking at a promotional event in China after England beat Tunisia 2-1 in their opening game, boosting their chances of reaching the knockout rounds. England have long stuttered on the big stage and they last reached the World Cup quarter-finals in 2006, when Beckham was captai...

Ronaldo aging like ‘port wine’ at fourth World Cup

22/06/2018
Moscow: Portugal coach Fernando Santos compared Cristiano Ronaldo to a bottle of port, the fortified wine that famously gets better with age, after his latest match-winning goal for his country. Five days after his hat-trick rescued Portugal in an opening 3-3 draw against Spain, Ronaldo's fourth-minute header clinched a 1-0 victory over Group B opponents Morocco in Moscow. Three previous tournaments yielded a return of just three goals for the five-time world player of the year, but Ronaldo i...

Neymar returns to training, Brazil guarantees he’s ready

22/06/2018
Sochi: Brazil is making sure everyone knows Neymar is perfectly fit at the World Cup. A day after he limped out of training and raised further doubts about his physical condition in Russia, the Brazilian soccer federation was quick to tell the world the team's biggest star was just fine. Brazil had a closed practice session Wednesday, two days before its game against Costa Rica in St. Petersburg, but the federation posted photos and a video of Neymar in action in training with the rest of th...

Southgate qualities echo Mourinho, Conte says Holland

22/06/2018
Saint Petersburg: England coach Steve Holland believes Gareth Southgate is showing the same key qualities he saw in the likes of Jose Mourinho, Rafael Benitez and Antonio Conte at Chelsea. Holland worked with the London club's first team from 2011 before joining Southgate, and England, in 2016. "I think with Gareth, he ticks so many of the boxes that the best that I've worked with tick," Holland said. "Does he understand man-management and getting the best out of players? Yes. Does he unders...

Birmingham Classic: Elina Svitolina eases into quarter-finals

22/06/2018
Birmingham: World number five Elina Svitolina continued her good form on grass ahead of Wimbledon, easing her way into the quarter-finals of the Nature Valley Classic in Birmingham. The second seed Ukrainian found her rhythm early in the contest and powered past France's Alize Cornet 6-4 6-2 in one hour and 22 minutes. The 23-year-old, chasing her first grand slam title, will hope to improve on her last-16 appearance at last year's Wimbledon, when she lost to Latvia's Jelena Ostapenko. "I wa...

Ahmed Shehzad reportedly fails dope test, faces suspension

22/06/2018
new delhi: Ahmed Shehzad, the 26-year-old Pakistan cricketer, has reportedly failed a dope Test and risks facing a three-month suspension from the game. According to a report on cricbuzz, Shehzad, who recently played for Pakistan in the Twenty20 series against Scotland, was tested during the Pakistan Cup where he played for Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The decision is expected to be announced in the next five days. Earlier in the day, the media department of the Pakistan Cricket Board had put out a tw...

Argentina rally behind Messi ahead of key Croatia clash

21/06/2018
Nizhniy Novgorod: Argentina are rallying around captain Lionel Messi as the South American giants prepare for their crucial Group D clash with Croatia here today. Messi made an unhappy start to the World Cup on Saturday, missing what would have been a winning penalty as Argentina were held to a 1-1 draw by minnows Iceland. It was a result that has renewed doubts about Argentina's ability to mount a sustained challenge at this World Cup, four years after they reached the final in Brazil. Anot...

Sardar’s presence will give motivation to other players: Manpreet

21/06/2018
BENGALURU: A team man to the core, Manpreet Singh has no qualms about losing captaincy and feels returning veteran Sardar Singh's presence in the middle will act as motivation for other players in the upcoming FIH Champions Trophy in Breda, Netherlands. Sardar, considered one of the world's best midfielders at one point of time, was dropped for the Commonwealth Games in Gold Coast, where India finished a disappointing fourth under Manpreet's captaincy. But the seasoned Sardar did not give up ...

‘Thinking man’s golfer’: Aussie great Thomson dies aged 88

21/06/2018
Sydney: Australian golfing great Peter Thomson, who won the British Open five times, died aged 88 after a long battle with Parkinson's disease, his family said. "He had been suffering from Parkinson's disease for more than four years and lost his brave battle at home in Melbourne surrounded by family," a statement said. Thomson was the first Australian to win the British Open, claiming the famous claret jug on five occasions between 1954 and 1965, including three consecutive wins. Only Americ...

Shiva, Salman enter quarters of Mongolian boxing tourney

21/06/2018
NEW DELHI: Shiva Thapa (60kg) and Salman Sheikh (52kg) notched up comprehensive wins to enter the quarterfinals as Indian boxers got off to a resounding start at the Ulaanbaatar Cup Tournament in Mongolia on Wednesday. Three-time Asian medallist Shiva out-punched local hope Oyunbileg Munkhsaikhan in a unanimous verdict, while Salman took just two rounds to brush aside Korean Young Sik Bae's challenge. Both the boxers are now just one win away from securing themselves a medal. Next up for Shiva...

Russia want more after closing in on last 16

21/06/2018
Saint Petersburg: Russia coach Stanislav Cherchesov hopes the best is yet to come for the World Cup hosts after they virtually sealed their place in the last 16 by easing past Egypt 3-1 despite Mohamed Salah's return. An own goal by Egypt captain Ahmed Fathi opened the floodgates on a sodden night in Saint Petersburg before goals from Denis Cheryshev and Artem Dzyuba bolstered Russian hopes they can defy pre-tournament expectations with a deep run into the latter stages. Salah did net Egypt's...

Ronaldo looks to inflate tally as Portugal take on Morocco

21/06/2018
MOSCOW: A video clip showing the other side of Cristiano Ronaldo has gone viral. In the clip, a young fan standing with his mother by the team bus, is crying as the team is about to depart for the World Cup. Ronaldo steps off the bus, hugs the little one, signs an autograph and poses for a photo. He’s just made the young fan’s day, week and month. Never letting go of an opportunity to strike a chord - that defines the Portugal captain, against Morocco on Wednesday, in his current goal-scoring ...

World Cup brings no lasting cheer for Russian beer

21/06/2018
Moscow: Football fans from around the world are flocking to Russia's bars, beer gardens and craft beer pubs to quench their thirst as the World Cup heats up. But the surge in sales will not have a lasting impact on Russia's beer industry, where consumption has been losing fizz for years -- ever since it lost its classification as a soft drink. Russia ranks 14th in terms of annual alcohol consumption per capita, according to the World Health Organization. But with spirits -- chiefly vodka -- ...

Central Africa says Boris Becker’s diplomatic passport is ‘fake’

21/06/2018
Bangui: The Central African Republic (CAR) said that a diplomatic passport that tennis star Boris Becker claims entitles him to immunity in bankruptcy proceedings in Britain "is a fake". "The diplomatic passport that he has is a fake," foreign ministry chief of staff Cherubin Mologbama told AFP. The document's serial number corresponded to one of a batch of "new passports that were stolen in 2014," he said. In addition, the passport a copy of which has been seen by AFP, and bears the date of...

England smash world record 481 in third ODI, rout Australia by 242 runs

21/06/2018
Trent Bridge: England have set a new world record in One Day Internationals by smashing 481 for 6 against Australia at Trent Bridge. The record was made in the 45th over the match itself when England scored 446 runs. England defeated Australia in the 37th over of the second innings. Australia could score just 239 runs. Interestingly, the previous record was also held by England when it had scored 444 for the loss of three wickets against Pakistan in 2016. It was also at Trent Bridge where Engl...

Andy Murray unsure about Wimbledon after comeback defeat against Nick Kyrgios

21/06/2018
London: Andy Murray was back at one of his favourite stomping grounds and while the resumption of his career ended in defeat by Nick Kyrgios, the Scot remained upbeat about his return from injury, if guarded about his Wimbledon participation. The 31-year-old three-times Grand Slam champion had not played a competitive match since losing to Sam Querrey in last year’s Wimbledon quarter-finals and opted to have right hip surgery five months ago. His ranking has slipped to 156 but there were times...