Author: robin24

Portuguese football icon Cristiano Ronaldo was at the White House as President Donald Trump hosted a glitzy dinner to honor Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on Wednesday (IST). The soccer star was seated near the front of the East Room, not far from where the president and crown prince gave remarks to officials from both nations, along with major business leaders such as Apple CEO Tim Cook and Tesla founder Elon Musk. Trump, in his speech, made a point of recognizing Ronaldo, whom he said he introduced to his teenage son. Ronaldo has been the face…

Kolkata: India’s head coach Gautam Gambhir with Kuldeep Yadav and Axar Patel (PTI Photo/Swapan Mahapatra) Sunil Gavaskar has issued a strong warning to the Indian team management and selectors following India’s defeat to South Africa in the opening Test in Kolkata, urging them to rethink their approach to team building in the longest format. Writing in his Sportstar column, the former India captain said the loss should force both the BCCI selectors and head coach Gautam Gambhir’s management group to place greater faith in proven domestic performers rather than relying on limited-overs-style all-rounders in Test cricket. Without naming any individual,…

The tiny Caribbean nation of Curacao became the smallest country ever to qualify for the World Cup on Tuesday as Haiti booked their return to the tournament for the first time in 52 years along with Panama. A nerve-shredding finale to the CONCACAF qualifying campaign saw Curacao — with a population of just 156,000 — squeeze into next year’s finals in the United States, Canada and Mexico with a 0-0 draw against Jamaica in Kingston. Haiti, meanwhile, who last appeared in the World Cup in 1974, also completed an improbable qualification campaign with a 2-0 win over Nicaragua.…

Kolkata: India’s coach Gautam Gambhir with Ravindra Jadeja (PTI Photo/Swapan Mahapatra) India’s dominance in home Tests has started to slip over the past year, raising serious questions about their approach to pitch preparation. What once felt like an almost impenetrable fortress is now beginning to show cracks, with visiting teams finding ways to challenge and even defeat India on surfaces designed to take turn from the opening day. After India’s 30-run defeat to South Africa at Eden Gardens, Australia women’s captain Alyssa Healy has openly questioned why India continue to prepare sharply turning wickets that even their own batters are…

A first-half goal blitz from Mauricio Pochettino’s side laid the foundations for an emphatic victory.© X (Twitter) The United States scored their most impressive win of Mauricio Pochettino’s reign with a 5-1 thrashing of Uruguay in an international friendly on Tuesday. A first-half goal blitz from Pochettino’s side laid the foundations for an emphatic victory in Tampa against Marcelo Bielsa’s overwhelmed Uruguay line-up. World Cup co-hosts the United States raced into a 4-0 lead just before half-time thanks to a goal from Sebastian Berhalter, two goals from Alex Freeman and a 42nd-minute strike from Diego Luna. Although Giorgian…

South Africa’s Simon Harmer with teammates celebrates after the wicket of Rishabh Pant (PTI Photo/Swapan Mahapatra) South Africa are on the brink of a landmark Test series triumph in India after their 30-run win in the opening Test of the two-match contest. A draw in the upcoming second Test in Guwahati would be enough for Temba Bavuma’s side to seal the series. Their preparations, however, have been unsettled by an unexpected injury scare. As per a News18 report, Player of the Match Simon Harmer is dealing with a shoulder issue and left-arm pacer Marco Jansen is also nursing a niggle.…

Spain booked their ticket to the 2026 World Cup with a 2-2 draw against Turkey in their final qualifier on Tuesday to top Group E. Turkey finished second and will compete in the play-offs after they became the first team to force Luis de la Fuente’s Euro 2024 champions to drop points. Dani Olmo fired Spain ahead but Deniz Gul and Salih Ozcan struck for Turkey as the hosts conceded their first goals in the qualification process. Mikel Oyarzabal hit back to equalise in Seville for a Spain team looking to win football’s biggest prize for the second…

Naseem Shah (AP Photo/Anjum Naveed) Sri Lanka have included leg-spinner Vijayakanth Viyaskanth in their T20I squad for the upcoming tri-series with Pakistan and Zimbabwe, starting Tuesday.Viyaskanth is currently in Doha playing for Lanka ‘A’ in the ACC Men’s Asia Cup Rising Stars 2025. He will travel directly from Qatar to Pakistan to join the national team.Afghanistan cricketer on air strike by Pakistan, constant support from India”Sri Lanka Cricket selectors have included leg-spinner Vijayakanth Viyaskanth in the National Men’s Squad for the T20I Tri-Series in Pakistan. He will travel to Pakistan directly from Qatar, where he was part of the Sri…

NEW DELHI: Ahead of the second Test of the two-match series against South Africa in Guwahati, India batters Sai Sudharsan and Dhruv Jurel trained with only one pad during an optional session at Kolkata’s Eden Gardens on Monday, using an old method meant to handle spin and improve footwork. Both faced spinners for nearly three hours while exposing one leg, a routine that carries some risk but is used to force batters to play with the bat rather than rely on pad defence.Sudharsan, a left-hander, took off his right pad to make a longer front-foot stride. He did not play…

India were beaten by South Africa in the first Test at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata. (AP) New Delhi: India’s 30-run loss to South Africa in the first Test at the Eden Gardens has opened a can of worms, with a flood of criticism directed towards coach Gautam Gambhir. He had asked for a certain kind of surface at the Eden Gardens, which turned out to be an “underprepared pitch.” Questions have also been raised about whether the current crop of Indian batters is well-equipped against quality spin and why the team management is not confident about playing specialists in…