SPORTS

New Delhi, March 28 (IANS) Former India and Chennai Super Kings (CSK) captain MS Dhoni has sustained a calf strain and has been subsequently ruled out for the first two weeks of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026, the franchise said in a statement.The 19th edition of the tournament is set to begin on Saturday, with defending champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) hosting Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in the curtain-raiser at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bangalore. CSK are set to play their campaign opener on Monday against the inaugural champions, Rajasthan Royals. However, Dhoni, who has led the franchise to five titles, the joint-most in the league across all seasons, will miss the first few matches and sit out for the first two weeks.“MS Dhoni is currently undergoing rehabilitation ...

Miami, March 28 (IANS) World No.2 Jannik Sinner stormed into the final of the Miami Open, the ATP Masters 1000 event, scripting another dominant victory over Alexander Zverev as he continued his surge towards a second successive title on the tour.Sinner, who claimed his first Indian Wells title a few days back, lined himself up for another title, racing into the final by defeating Zverev 6-3, 7-6(4) on Friday evening. With this win, Sinner extended his record to 32 consecutive sets won at ATP Masters 1000 events.In the final to be played on Sunday, the world No. 2 from Italy will face Czech Jiri Lehecka, who defeated Arthur Fils 6-2, 6-2 to reach his maiden Masters 1000 final on Friday. But the focus was on Sinner in the Miami Open semifinals as he tried to take advantage of the early defe...

New York, March 28 (IANS) The golf world and social media reacted with shock and concern as former World No.1 Tiger Woods was arrested in Florida after being involved in a car accident near his home, with the police releasing a photograph of the legend in which his eyes were bloodshot.Golf legend Woods was reportedly arrested on suspicion of drunk driving after being involved in a rollover car crash near his home in Florida, shocking the sports world as the former World No. 1 had returned to the circuit only a few days ago.According to local authorities, the 50-year-old Woods, who was involved in a rollover car crash, displayed signs of “impairment” after his arrest. The Martin County police released a mugshot of Woods in the evening, in which his eyes appeared bloodshot. The multiple PGA ...

Madrid, March 28 (IANS) Mikel Oyarzabal scored two goals as Spain sailed past Serbia 3-0 at home in one of its last preparation matches ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup.In other International Friendlies played on Friday night, England were held to a 1-1 draw by Uruguay at Wembley Stadium in London, the Netherlands defeated Norway 2-1 at the Amsterdam Arena in Amsterdam, while Germany overcame Switzerland 4-3 in an away match at Stade de Suisse, with Florian Wirtz scoring a late brace.Defending champions Argentina too had it easy as they rode on two first-half goals as they prevailed over 2-1 against Mauritania, while Russia defeated Nicaragua 3-1 at the Luzhniki Stadium, recovering from a 1-1 score in the first half.Oyarzabal's first goal in the 16th minute was a shot across the face of th...

New Delhi, March 27 (IANS) The All India Football Federation, on Friday, opened the bids for the Request for Proposal (RFP) for Commercial Rights Relating to Competitions and Properties Owned by AIFF. Rights for the Indian Super League (ISL), Federation Cup (formerly Super Cup), the Indian Women’s League (IWL), and the IWL 2 were bid on.Bids were received from three organisations. FanCode and Genius Sports submitted bids for the commercial rights relating to the Indian Super League and the Federation Cup (or the Super Cup). Meanwhile, Capri Sports placed bids for the commercial rights of the Indian Women's League and the Indian Women's League 2.The bids have been submitted for a 15-year term with a provision for an additional five-year extension, with the bidder having the right of first r...

Bengaluru, March 27 (IANS) Defending champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) are all set to play the season opener of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026, taking on Sunrisers Hyderabad at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru on Saturday. Ahead of the fixture, head coach Andy Flower said the team is approaching the new campaign with a fresh outlook despite entering the tournament as the defending champions.“Of course, we are the holders from last year, but this is a brand new year, and we’re all looking forward to the challenge. One of the truths in life is that change is always there. We are a different group now; the players are a year older, and our opponents have evolved in certain ways. Conditions might also be different, so the challenge of this IPL will be completely differen...

Raipur, March 27 (IANS) Karnataka extended their lead at the top of the medals tally with yet another dominant showing at the international swimming pool, while hosts Chhattisgarh had their best day in the first Khelo India Tribal Games (KITG) 2026 so far, winning one silver and two bronze medals here in Raipur on Friday.The strapping Manikanta L. once again led the charge as the Karnataka swimmer added two gold and silver to his individual tally. Karnataka ended Day 3 with 13 gold, 5 silver, and one bronze. Odisha are second with six gold, two silver, and nine bronze medals, while Assam are third with two gold, four silver, and two bronze medals. Chhattisgarh is joint seventh with Tripura with six medals each – three silvers and as many bronze. For Chhattisgarh, Anushka Bhagat grabbed her...

New Delhi, March 27 (IANS) Olympian Maheshwari Chauhan fired a 69 on the first day of the qualification round at the Tangier Shooting Club in Morocco, keeping her within range of a berth in the final of the women’s skeet competition in the year’s first International Shooting Sport Federation (ISSF) Shotgun World Cup in Tangier. Starting early on Friday morning, Maheshwari shot 21 in the first round but came back strong, closing out with a couple of 24s to give her seventh spot on the leaderboard. The top eight go through to the final on Saturday, after two more rounds of qualification are played out.Teammates Darshna Rathore and Yashasvi Rathore shot scores of 64 each to lie in 25th and 26th spots, respectively, one ahead of reigning Olympic champion Francisca Crovetto Chadid of Chile, who...

New Delhi, March 27 (IANS) As the 2026 Indian Premier League (IPL) season approaches, Sunrisers Hyderabad face the same dilemma that has plagued them for a long time – an intimidating batting lineup that has been boosted by new players, backed by a weak bowling unit. They still have doubts about whether they will be able to cope with the fragility of their bowling.Strengths: There is little doubt that SRH have one of the most destructive batting lineups in the entire tournament. The opening pair of Travis Head and Abhishek Sharma can rip through any bowling attack during the powerplays, whilst they also have very scary middle-order batters like Heinrich Klaasen, Nitish Kumar Reddy, and Ishan Kishan, all of whom are capable of maintaining a high strike rate but still accumulating volume run...

New Delhi, March 27 (IANS) Five-time champions Mumbai Indians will look for dominance as they enter the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 with their core squad and some new faces. Several key players, including former captain Rohit Sharma and Hardik Pandya, are leading a settled squad and hope that experience will help them find their way back to having a winning formula through stability and some smart additions.Strengths: The MI's main advantage is that they have well-defined roles on a well-established core. They have an impressive and deep batting line-up, with Rohit being supported by either Ryan Rickelton or Quinton de Kock, who is also returning. The MI's middle-order comprising Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma, and Hardik Pandya are all premium players who will give the MI a mixture of...