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Captain Shubman Gill and Ishan Kishan led the way with centuries as they set up India’s massive 170-run victory over Afghanistan on Wednesday, sealing the three-match one-day international (ODI) series with two straight wins.Gill and Kishan added 224 runs for the third wicket as India scored 402 after being put in to bat first in Lucknow. Afghanistan could only reach 232-9 in reply, with Darwish Rasooli retiring hurt.After Yashasvi Jaiswal (4) fell early and Rohit Sharma (48) was bowled by Rashid Khan (3-48), Gill and Kishan kept the runs flowing, punishing the Afghan bowlers through the middle overs.When India neared the 200-run mark, the two batters upped the tempo, scoring 121 runs in nine overs to get India to 307-2 after 36 overs. Gill and Kishan both completed their centuries with boundaries in the 33rd over, while collecting 21 runs from Bilal Sami.But spinner Nangeyalia Kharote (4-76) limited the damage, getting both of them out. Kishan, who scored his first ODI century since 2022, hit seven sixes and 14 boundaries en route to an explosive 125 off 79 balls before getting caught trying to pull Kharote for six.Gill was more measured, hitting only two sixes and 22 fours as he scored 154 off 110 balls, his ninth ODI hundred. But his tactful attempt to reverse sweep Kharote backfired, and the mis-timed shot got caught at deep point.Kharote dismissed KL Rahul for a golden duck in the very next ball, leaving India at 360-5 in the 43rd over. India lost the rest of their batters within 42 runs, and were bowled out with one ball to spare.SHAH’S LONELY BATTLE FALLS SHORTAfghanistan were up against the odds chasing a target of 403, and their chances looked thinner after Rahmanullah Gurbaz, who had scored a 48-ball century in the previous match, got dismissed at 41 by Gurnoor Brar (3-60).Sediqullah Atal (42) failed to get the visitors back on track. Darwish Rasooli had to retire hurt with a right hamstring injury soon after, and Brar bowled captain Hashmatullah Shahidi two balls later.By the time Arshdeep Singh (3-45) dismissed Rashid Khan and Allah Ghazanfar in two successive deliveries in different overs, it was all but over with Afghanistan at 190-7.”I did not realise I was on a hat-trick… now I have a regret,” said Singh in a post-match interview.But Rahmat Shah’s lonely resistance, with a defiant 79 off 89 balls, helped the visitors get to 232 before the fall of their ninth wicket ended the match in the 45th over. BRIEF SCORES India 402 (Gill 154, Kishan 125, Kharote 4-76, Rashid 3-48) beat Afghanistan 232 (Rahmat 79, Gurbaz 41, Arshdeep 3-45, Gurnoor 3-60) by 170 runs Related Story Source link
Seven-time MotoGP champion Marc Marquez will seek to narrow the gap on championship leader Marco Bezzecchi at Brno this weekend with a boost from a mighty comeback to racing.The 33-year-old Spaniard on a Ducati sat out two Grand Prix in May with a broken foot, but he returned in style with a race-spint double at the Balaton Park circuit in Hungary in early June.He capitalised on an early crash as championship runner-up Jorge Martin on an Aprilia had taken out his teammate Bezzecchi and three other riders in the first corner.Both Martin and Bezzecchi withdrew and Martin will serve a double long-lap penalty at Brno as a result – a penalty Aprilia Racing head Massimo Rivola said could have been even ‘stronger and harsher’.Ahead of the Czech MotoGP, Bezzecchi sits atop the overall rankings with 180 points from eight of the season's 22 races of which he has won four, while Martin in second has managed 160.Third-placed Fabio Di Giannantonio with 138 points was also involved in the crash, but he rejoined the race and finished 12th.Marquez in fifth overall has collected 108 points after his 100th MotoGP win in Hungary, which was also the 100th top-class win for Ducati.’I'm a believer, I try to do my 100 percent and I need to try. I feel I'm still far from my performance, the way I want to ride, but I'm still fast,’ Marquez told MotoGP after his first win of the season.But he admitted the latest injury – on the heels of recurrent problems with a broken arm that plagued him for years – did not allow him to race the way he wants.’The comeback is still not finished,’ Marquez said.’It depends a lot (on) Brno and Assen and then on the summer break. I still need to reach my new 100 percent… but of course, you know me: if I'm here, it's to fight — every race, every practice.’ 'Close the chapter'Bezzecchi made it clear his motivation had grown following the Balaton Park crash from which he emerged with bruises.’What a shame,’ the 27-year-old Italian wrote in his blog ‘Simply the Bez’.’I watched the race about ten times – I didn't remember much of it because of the adrenaline, so I had to go back and watch everything from the start. Nice to do, but then you close the chapter and move on.”Fortunately nobody was seriously hurt, just a few bruises. We'll make up for it at Brno,’ Bezzecchi added.Last year, Marquez took a double at Brno, the Czech Republic's second largest city after Prague, beating Bezzecchi in the race for his fourth MotoGP victory there.Marquez's younger brother Alex, ninth overall, is planning a return at Brno after missing two Grand Prix with a broken collarbone and a ‘marginal’ vertebra fracture following a crash in the Catalan GP in May.Brno returned to the MotoGP calendar last year after a five-year break due to financial woes and following a revamp of the track that made it much faster.The MotoGP circus has three races to go before the summer break. Source link
US President Donald Trump speaks to reporters as he arrives at Orly Airport Wednesday. (AFP) US President Donald Trump said Wednesday the United States will leave its military in the Gulf “for a while” after Washington struck a deal with Tehran to end its nearly four-month conflict in the region.While speaking to reporters in Paris, Trump added it would be unfair for Iran not to have ballistic missiles if other countries have them.”I’m saying that if other countries have them, it’s a little bit unfair for them not to have some,” Trump told reporters in Paris.”If Saudi Arabia and Qatar, and they all have some, I would say in relative proportion, I think it’s okay.”Earlier Wednesday, he also said his new ceasefire agreement with Iran was not final and he could resume the war if he is unsatisfied, even as Israel launched fresh airstrikes in Lebanon where fighting threatens the wider truce.”It’s a memorandum of understanding. And if I don’t like it, we’ll go back to shooting at them, dropping bombs on their head,” Trump said at a G7 summit in France of the agreement, reached three days ago.”If I don’t like it, if they don’t behave, we’ll go right back to dropping bombs right smack in the middle of their head, OK?”Leaders hailed the agreement at the summit, held in the French town of Evian-les-Bains, an hour’s drive along the shore of Lake Geneva from where the Iran ceasefire memorandum is due to be signed at a ceremony across the Swiss border tomorrow.Tehran’s foreign ministry Wednesday said it was considering a plan for the presidents of the US and Iran to sign the deal ending the Middle East war, ahead of an expected ceremony in Switzerland.”So far, our plans for the Geneva meeting have not changed,” ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei said.”Regarding the signing of the memorandum of understanding, one idea is that it be done by the presidents of the two countries, which is currently under review.”If the presidents were to sign the document, he added, “in principle it would be done remotely.”Tehran has previously said the United States and Iran would be represented at the meeting in Switzerland by Vice President JD Vance and parliament speaker and top negotiator Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, respectively.US President Donald Trump said at a G7 summit in France on Wednesday that he expected the accord with Iran to “be signed shortly, tomorrow, maybe the next day”.Trump added that he “might” stay in Europe for the signing but added that as a memorandum of understanding “it might not be the kind of a document I should be signing”. Related Story Source link
The Laver Cup, an annual showdown of men’s tennis stars pitting Team Europe against Team World, will be played next year in Los Angeles, organizers announced on Wednesday. The Intuit Dome in suburban Inglewood, home to the NBA’s Los Angeles Clippers, will host the competition on September 24-26, 2027. Team Europe owns a 5-3 lead in the all-time rivalry but Team World has won three of the past four meetings entering this year’s event in London in September, part of the ATP Tour calendar. Intuit Dome hosted February’s NBA All-Star Game and will be the venue for basketball at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics. “Los Angeles is one of the world’s leading destinations for major sporting events,” Laver Cup chief executive officer Steve Zacks said. “We can think of no better city and venue to host the 10th edition of the Laver Cup.” Opened in August 2024 in Inglewood, California, Intuit Dome is the state-of-the-art home arena that was built with a privately funded $2 billion investment by owner Steve Ballmer. The 18,000-seat venue is engineered for an intense, “fan-first” basketball experience, experts say. The arena’s design brings spectators exceptionally close to the action. Its defining structural feature is the Halo Board, a massive, double-sided 4K LED scoreboard stretching almost a full acre. For a passionate home-court advantage, the venue features “The Wall,” an uninterrupted 51-row cheering section reserved exclusively for Clippers fans. Focused on convenience, the facility utilizes biometric and facial recognition technology for a completely cashless, ticketless, and frictionless experience. It also boasts three times the NBA average for restrooms to eliminate wait times. Operating with high sustainability standards, the all-electric, LEED Platinum-certified venue features an iconic gridshell exterior. Related Story Source link
More than 400 international sailing delegates will gather in Qingdao, China from November 16 to 21 to shape the future of the sport, World Sailing announced on Wednesday, naming the city host of its Annual Conference and Awards.Qingdao, in Shandong Province, hosted the Olympic sailing competition at the 2008 Beijing Games and is known as China's sailing capital. World Sailing's president, Li Quanhai, is the first Chinese national to hold the role.The conference brings together delegates to discuss proposals, address challenges facing the sport and share suggestions for improvement at all levels.The World Sailing Awards, also part of the event, recognises athletes and those working to develop and innovate in sailing worldwide.Li Quanhai defeated incumbent Kim Andersen of Denmark by eight votes to become the first Chinese president of World Sailing. He is currently serving a second four-year term.’The Annual Conference is always a special occasion, one where the global sailing community is able to come together, discuss proposals, celebrate our successes and share suggestions to improve the experience for sailors at all levels while speaking openly about challenges facing the sport worldwide and create new opportunities for the growth,’ said World Sailing Chief Executive David Graham. Source link
Italian tennis player Lorenzo Musetti has pulled out of Wimbledon, it was announced on Wednesday. Italian Lorenzo Musetti pulled out of Wimbledon on Wednesday as he continued to recover from the thigh injury that meant the former world number five also missed the French Open.Musetti, who reached the Wimbledon semi-finals in 2024, has not played since he fell to Casper Ruud in the fourth round of the Italian Open in Rome in mid-May.”I want to update you on my recovery from the injury I sustained in Rome: rehabilitation is going very well and the medical results are encouraging,” the 24-year-old Musetti wrote on Instagram.”Unfortunately, as I have not yet been able to begin a full athletic training program, and after careful evaluation, we have come to the difficult conclusion that I will not be able to participate in Wimbledon this year.””It is not an easy decision, but it is the right one.” Related Story Source link
Yoshitha Rajapaksa, who was arrested by the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery and Corruption (CIABOC), arrives at Hulftsdorp Chief Magistrate’s Court in Colombo, Wednesday. (Reuters)…
US Anti-Doping Agency chief executive officer Travis T. Tygart criticized World Anti-Doping Agency officials on Tuesday over plans to change testing at major events, allowing sport federations a greater role.WADA unveiled ideas for change among 19 recommendations in a report by its Working Group on National Anti-Doping Organizations Operational Independence (WGOI).’It has been reported that some stakeholders, including athletes, perceive that there's a potential conflict of interest where a NADO (national anti-doping organization) is solely responsible for doping control for its country's international-level athletes,’ the report said.’It's therefore important to consider whether this perception may be overcome by putting in place mechanisms that mitigate the perceived risk, with a view to strengthening the overall anti-doping system and stakeholder trust, particularly amongst athletes.’Among the ideas would be having international sport federations play a larger role in anti-doping measures, which drew Tygart's ire.’WADA leaders' intent to push aside truly independent national anti-doping organizations and hand control back to sport and sport service providers at major events is a dangerous step backwards and risks compromising the fairness of major events and athletes' right to fair competition,’ Tygart said in a statement.’Dressing this up as progress is an attempt to pull the wool over the eyes of clean athletes, fans, and the public who deserve real independence, real accountability, and a system that protects them — not one that protects sport from scrutiny and the global anti-doping watchdog from accountability.’Tygart also noted a Monday letter by Sara Carter, director of the US Office of National Drug Control Policy, that worried WADA would diminish NADOs and undercut confidence in doping tests before the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.Carter urged WADA to reject any use of the WGOI Report as a springboard to major changes in the global anti-doping program.Tygart called the plans ‘another slap in the face by WADA leadership to all athletes who commit to competing clean and nations that enforce the rules consistently and fairly.’The report's 19th recommendation was to deal with anti-doping groups from a host nation deal with their own nation's athletes.It would define roles for sport federations and event organizers in the doping control program, with the national anti-doping program not involved or contract to develop or monitor testing plans or selection of athletes for testing, test administration and results.’Rather, these functions will be carried out by an independent, non-partisan body, removing the possibility of an actual or perceived conflict of interest or bias,’ the report said.js/dmc Source link
The UN Security Council has been meeting in New York for its annual open debate on women, peace and security, in line with a 25-year-old resolution…
Fit-again fast bowlers Alzarri Joseph and Shamar Joseph have returned to the West Indies Test squad for the upcoming two-match home series against Sri Lanka, while Joshua Da Silva has been drafted in to replace wicketkeeper Tevin Imlach.Both Alzarri (back) and Shamar (shoulder) missed the previous tours of India and New Zealand but made their competitive return during the limited-overs series against Sri Lanka earlier this month.Following Imlach's recent struggles with the bat against New Zealand and India, selectors have recalled Da Silva as reward for the 27-year-old's rich vein of form in domestic cricket.’Sri Lanka are a quality side, so we know we'll have to be at our best, but we're excited about the challenge ahead,’ head coach Daren Sammy said in a statement.’For us, it's about playing with discipline, showing character when the game gets tough, and representing the West Indies with pride. The players have been putting in the work, and we're looking forward to putting on a strong display for our fans across the Caribbean.’Top-order batter Amir Jangoo, who was dropped after making his test debut in Pakistan in 2025, has also earned a recall to the side.The two-test series is scheduled to get underway in North Sound on June 25.West Indies squad:Roston Chase (captain), Jomel Warrican, John Campbell, Tagenarine Chanderpaul, Joshua Da Silva, Justin Greaves, Kavem Hodge, Shai Hope, Amir Jangoo, Alzarri Joseph, Shamar Joseph, Brandon King, Anderson Phillip, Kemar Roach, Jayden Seales. Source link