SPORTS

New Delhi, Oct 27 (IANS) In a nail-biting Qualifier 1, Dabang Delhi K.C. clinched a riveting 6-4 win in the tiebreaker against Puneri Paltan at the Thyagaraj Indoor Stadium on Monday night. The two teams were tied at 34-34 after regulation time, forcing a third tiebreaker between the two sides this season, which witnessed the Season 8 champions eventually prevail and confirm their spot in the final.Saurabh Nandal and Abinesh Nadarajan opened the scoring for their respective sides with imposing tackles to set the tone in this qualifier 1. Dabang Delhi raced into an early four-point lead soon after, with tackles from Sandeep and Surjeet Singh. Ashu Malik’s do-or-die raid helped them keep that advantage, but not for too long, as a super tackle from Gurdeep narrowed the gap to one point with ...

Chattogram, Oct 27 (IANS) Captain Shai Hope and vice-captain Rovman Powell produced a stunning late onslaught to power West Indies to a 16-run victory over Bangladesh in the first T20I at Chattogram on Monday. With the visitors struggling at 82 for 3 in the 15th over, Hope and Powell turned the game around with an unbroken 83-run stand off just 41 balls.Their partnership lifted West Indies to 165 for 3, a total that proved too steep for Bangladesh, who were bowled out for 149 despite a late fightback from Tanzim Hasan and Nasum Ahmed.Hope led from the front with an unbeaten 46 off 28 balls, hammering a four and four sixes. Powell, playing his 100th T20I, matched his skipper with 44 not out off 28 deliveries, including four sixes and a four. The pair added 51 runs in the final three overs...

New Delhi, Oct 27 (IANS) India opener Yashasvi Jaiswal is set to return to domestic action in the upcoming round of the 2025–26 Ranji Trophy, beginning November 1, when Mumbai face Rajasthan in Jaipur in an Elite Group D clash. Fresh off India’s ODI tour of Australia, Jaiswal is eager to sharpen his form ahead of the home Test series against South Africa, starting November 14 in Kolkata. His participation aligns with the BCCI’s directive requiring contracted players to turn out for domestic games whenever available.Jaiswal has informed Sanjay Patil, Mumbai’s chairman of selectors, of his availability. Patil and his panel are expected to announce the squad for the Rajasthan fixture following the conclusion of the ongoing round on Tuesday.If he takes the field, it will mark Jaiswal’s first a...

New Delhi, Oct 27 (IANS) Patna Pirates continued their impressive run after securing a commanding 46–37 victory over the Bengaluru Bulls in eliminator 2 at the Thyagaraj Indoor Stadium on Monday. In doing so, they booked their place in eliminator 3, where they will face Telugu Titans on Wednesday. The Pirates were in top form once again, extending their winning streak to eight matches. Star raider Ayan led the charge with a brilliant performance, scoring 19 points, while the team’s defence played a crucial role in keeping the Bulls under constant pressure. A highlight of the match for the Bulls was Shubham Bitake’s seven-point raid, which is the most individual points by a player in PKL history.The Bengaluru Bulls started the match on a strong note with Alireza Mirzaian earning the first p...

Shillong, Oct 27 (IANS) The Indian senior women’s team suffered a 1-2 defeat against Nepal in their second match of the Women’s Tri-Nation International Friendlies at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Shillong, on Monday. A brace from Nepal striker Sabitra Bhandari (2’, 63’) put the visitors on the front foot, before Karishma Shirvoikar (81’) pulled one back late in the second half, scoring her first-ever goal for the senior national team.Nepal got an early start to the game when Sabitra was set through on goal in the second minute itself, as she chased a bouncing ball before dinking it over India goalkeeper Elangbam Panthoi Chanu to hand her side the early advantage.One goal down, India began their search for a way back into the game, with Nongmaithem Ratanbala Devi pulling the strings from...

Pune, Oct 27 (IANS) The Poona Club Ltd. and the Professional Golf Tour of India (PGTI) on Monday jointly announced the second edition of The Poona Club Open golf tournament which will be held at the magnificent Poona Club Golf Course from October 28-31. The tournament carries a prize purse of Rs 1 crore.The tournament will feature leading Indian professionals such as DP World Tour regular Veer Ahlawat, 2025 PGTI Ranking leader Yuvraj Sandhu, Arjun Prasad, Angad Cheema, Shaurya Bhattacharya, Om Prakash Chouhan and Manu Gandas, to name a few.The foreign challenge will be led by Sri Lankan N Thangaraja and Nepal’s Subash Tamang.The host venue Poona Club Golf Course will be represented by professionals Rohan Dhole Patil, Pranav Mardikar, Gurki Shergill (a winner on the PGTI), Akshay Damale, Pr...

Navi Mumbai, Oct 27 (IANS) Opener Shafali Verma has been approved as a replacement for the injured Pratika Rawal in India’s squad for the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup 2025, the ICC confirmed on Monday. The ICC’s Event Technical Committee gave its approval after Rawal was ruled out of the tournament due to an ankle injury sustained while fielding in India’s last league match against Bangladesh on Sunday. “The Event Technical Committee of the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup 2025 has approved Shafali Verma as a replacement for Pratika Rawal in the India squad,” the ICC statement added.Shafali, who was not part of India’s original squad or reserves, will join the team ahead of the semi-final against Australia in Navi Mumbai on October 30 and will be available for selection immediately. Her ret...

Bambolim (Goa), Oct 27 (IANS) Three first-half goals powered Punjab FC to a commanding 3-0 victory over Gokulam Kerala FC in their Group C opener of the Super Cup at Goa on Monday. Muhammad Suhail, Nikhil Prabhu, and Princeton Rebello found the net for the Shers, sealing all three points in a match largely dictated by Punjab’s intensity and precision in the opening half. Punjab made their attacking intent clear from the outset as Samir Zeljkovic forced an early save from Gokulam goalkeeper Shibinraj Kunniyil with a long-range strike.Just a minute later, Suhail gave Punjab the lead, his attempted cross from the left taking a heavy deflection off defender Gursimrat Singh and looping into the net past a wrong-footed Shibinraj. The defending ISL champions doubled their advantage soon after th...

New Delhi, Oct 27 (IANS) Yash Dhull and Ayush Doseja have powered Delhi into a commanding position on day three of their Ranji Trophy Elite Group D clash against Himachal Pradesh at the Arun Jaitley Stadium on Monday.Dhull struck a fluent 70 off 59 balls, while Doseja remained unbeaten on 62, hitting eight boundaries, as Delhi raced to 196/4 in just 32 overs before bad light brought an early end to the day’s play. The duo stitched together a brisk 125-run stand in 19.3 overs after Delhi were reduced to 53/3 and extended the hosts’ overall lead to 329 runs.Earlier in the day, Delhi secured a 133-run first-innings lead by bowling out Himachal Pradesh for 297. Senior pacer Navdeep Saini led the attack with figures of 3-52, while Money Grewal chipped in with 2-47. With six points in sight, Del...

Birmingham, Oct 27 (IANS) Aston Villa have confirmed that defender Matty Cash has signed a new long-term contract that will keep him at the club until 2029, extending his stay beyond five seasons in Claret and Blue.In an official statement, the club said, “Aston Villa is delighted to announce that Matty Cash has signed a new contract with the club. The defender has agreed a deal that will keep him at Villa until 2029.”A Poland international who featured at the 2022 FIFA World Cup, Cash joined Villa from Nottingham Forest in September 2020 after coming through the academy ranks at the City Ground. He made 141 appearances for Forest before his move to Villa, where he has since developed into one of the Premier League’s most dependable full-backs.Now closing in on 200 appearances in Claret an...