SPORTS

Liverpool, Dec 27 (IANS) Defending champion Liverpool closed out 2025 with a 2-1 victory over Wolverhampton Wanderers in the Premier League, moving to 32 points as they remained among the top five in the table on Saturday.A quickfire double late in the first half from Ryan Gravenberch and Florian Wirtz – his first competitive goal for the club – put the Reds in command of the festive Anfield affair. Santiago Bueno pulled one back for Wolves shortly after half-time, but Arne Slot's men held on to record their fourth consecutive win in all competitions.In another match on the busy day, a hat-trick by Kevin Schade and Djordje Petrovic's own goal saw Brentford defeat Bournemouth 4-1 at Gtech Community Stadium. Antoine Semenyo scored for the Cherries, but Brentford made it two successive wins t...

London, Dec 27 (IANS) Skipper Martin Odegaard scored his first goal of the season to help Arsenal prevail over Brighton 2-1 in a home match and moved back to the top of the Premier League table in London on Saturday.Odegaard powered home from just outside the area before Georgino Rutter flicked into his own net from a Declan Rice set piece to double the Gunners' advantage. But Brighton fought back and levelled the score through a Diego Gomez goal in the 64th-minute. It took a stunning David Raya stop to deny Yankuba Minteh and preserve the precious three points, and take Arsenal to 42 points from 18 matches and preserved their two-point advantage over Manchester City.In the crucial clash on Saturday, their second last match of 2025, Arsenal needed under two minutes to gain their first oppo...

Nottingham, Dec 27 (IANS) Rayan Cherki struck an 83rd-minute winner to secure a 2-1 victory for Manchester City against Nottingham Forest as Pep Guardiola ended the year 2025 on a perfect note with an eighth successive win in Nottingham on Saturday.After a goalless first half in which neither side had a shot on target, Tijjani Reijnders fired City ahead three minutes after the break when he calmly finished a well-crafted move.It looked like City would be denied a perfect December when Omari Hutchinson equalised from close range six minutes later and left Pep Guardiola's side fretting the loss of a point.With time ticking down, Cherki, who also provided the assist for Reijnders’ opener, drilled a low volley through a crowded penalty area and into the net to seal victory and full points for ...

Surat (Gujarat), Dec 27 (IANS) Ghumanhera Riser’s Academy, Pritam Siwach Hockey Academy, Sonepat, S.G.P.C Hockey Academy, Sports Authority of Gujarat – Hockey Academy, Namdhari XI, and Roundglass Hockey Academy registered victories on Day 3 of the 3rd Hockey India Junior Men Academy Championship 2025 – Zone A & B in Suraj on Saturday.In Pool D, Ghumanhera Riser’s Academy edged past Bhai Behlo Hockey Academy, Bhagta 3–2, courtesy of goals from Duvish (21’), Yash (23’), and Hitesh Kataria (42’). Rahul Tanwar (10’) and Himanshu Chanaliya (59’) scored for the losing side.In the same pool, Pritam Siwach Hockey Academy, Sonepat secured a commanding 15–4 victory over Raja Karan Hockey Academy. Nikhil (16’, 25’, 33’, 35’, 39’) starred with five goals, while Nitin (22’, 30’, 59’) netted a hat-t...

Vijayawada, Dec 27 (IANS) Local favourite Surya Charishma Tamiri and the up-and-coming Tanvi Patri set up the summit clash in women’s singles, while Rithvik Sanjeevi S. will take on Bharat Raghav in the men's singles final of the Senior National Badminton Championships in Vijayawada on Saturday.All four players reached the final day of the competition after registering hard-fought wins over their respective opponents in the semifinals.Surya Charishma, who had accounted for top seed Unnati Hooda in the quarterfinals, defeated world number 45 Rakshita Sree R 21-18, 18-21, 21-9, while Tanvi came from a game down to end the inspired run of Maharashtra’s Shruti Mundada 18-21, 21-12, 21-15 to reach their first-ever senior nationals finals.In the men’s singles semifinals, 2024 Odisha Masters winn...

Noida, Dec 27 (IANS) Gazab Ghaziabad produced a dominant all-round performance to defeat Yamuna Yoddhas 56–28 on Day 3 of Season 2 in the Uttar Pradesh Kabaddi League (UPKL) at the Noida Indoor Stadium in Noida on Saturday.Gazab Ghaziabad took control of the contest early, combining aggressive raiding with a disciplined defensive effort to put Yamuna Yoddhas under sustained pressure. The momentum firmly swung in Gazab’s favour as they inflicted a series of all-outs, steadily widening the gap on the scoreboard.Captain Uday Dabas led from the front with an outstanding display of raiding. He orchestrated three all-outs during the match, repeatedly breaking through the Yamuna defence. One of the defining moments came when Dabas, despite being held by two defenders, pushed forward with determin...

New Delhi, Dec 27 (IANS) Ayush Mhatre has been named as India’s captain for the upcoming Men’s Under-19 World Cup, to be held in Zimbabwe and Namibia from January 15 to February 6.But Mhatre and Vihaan Malhotra, also named in the U19 World Cup squad, will not be a part of the pre-tournament 50-over tour of South Africa, to take place from January 3-7, after sustaining wrist injuries.In Mhatre’s absence, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi will lead the side on the tour of South Africa, where they will play all of their three matches at Willowmoore Park in Benoni, while Yuvraj Gohil and Rahul Kumar are added to the squad selected by the Junior Men’s Selection Committee.IANS understands that both Mhatre and Malhotra were in Mumbai on Friday for further assessments of their wrist injuries, and their status ...

Rio de Janeiro, Dec 27 (IANS) Former Palmeiras, Cruzeiro, and Santos midfielder Robinho Signorini has announced his retirement after a professional career spanning two decades.The 38-year-old's contract with Brazilian Serie C side Brusque ended this month, and he declined offers to continue playing to accept an assistant coaching role with Nautico, which will compete in Serie B next year. "I am putting a full stop to my journey as a professional athlete. However, I will continue in the world of football, now from outside the four lines," he said in a social media post.Robinho's career highlights include a Brazilian Serie A title and a Copa do Brasil trophy with Palmeiras, and two Copa do Brasil triumphs with Cruzeiro. His career also included spells at Varginha, Mogi Mirim, Avai, Coritiba,...

Jamshedpur, Dec 27 (IANS) Shubham Jaglan and Yuvraj Sandhu were neck-and-neck in a two-horse race ahead of the final round of the Tata Open 2025, an INR 2 crore event and the PGTI’s season-finale, being played at the Beldih and Golmuri golf courses in Jamshedpur.The 21-year-old Shubham Jaglan (68-66-65), who turned professional earlier this year and is playing only his third event on the PGTI, came up with a top-notch and error-free six-under 65 on Day Three to move up one spot into the joint lead at 14-under 199. Gurugram-based Shubham, who finished runner-up on his PGTI debut last month in Chandigarh, is now searching for his maiden title on the tour.Yuvraj Sandhu (67-64-68), the halfway leader by three shots, struck a three-under 68 in round three to end the day tied for the lead at 14-...

Melbourne, Dec 27 (IANS) England's dramatic two-day victory over Australia in the fourth Test of the Ashes 2025-26 series has ignited fierce debate about the green pitch at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, with former skipper Michael Vaughan saying that while the result merits celebration, the quality of cricket on display will not be celebrated much by fans.“A win is a win, and England should celebrate, but NO Test cricket fans should be celebrating what we have seen for 2 days .. #Ashes,” wrote Vaughan on his ‘X’ account on Saturday.The 10mm of grass left on the pitch resulted in 36 wickets falling in six sessions at the MCG, as England ended a 14-year wait for a Test match victory in Australia with a four-wicket win. England dismissed Australia for 132 in their second innings to set themse...