Sports

LONDON: The World Cup which gets underway on Thursday will provide a sharp focus for one-day international cricket and a chance to show how the 50-over game has evolved since India last staged the tournament in 2011. One of the criticisms of ODIs, once the economic driving force of the global game, is that they are too often reduced to …

HANGZHOU: Pakistan got off to a winning start men’s cricket, continued their victorious run in kabaddi and shone in weightlifting at the Asian Games on Tuesday. At the Zhejiang University of Technology Cricket Field here, a batting cameo by Aamir Jamal and Khushdil Shah’s trickery with the ball led Pakistan to a 68-run win over Hong Kong in the quarter-final …

RIYADH: Cristiano Ronaldo was on target as Al-Nassr survived a scare in the Asian Champions League on Monday with the Saudi Pro League side coming from a goal down to hand Tajikistan’s Istiklol a 3-1 defeat in Riyadh. Senin Sebai scored on the break to put the club from Dushanbe in front with a minute left in the first half …

BENGALURU: Pakistan batter Babar Azam scored a breezy 90 against Australia while Iftikhar Ahmed sparkled at the top of the order with an 83 but the 1992 world champions could not prevent a 14-run defeat in their World Cup warm-up game in Hyderabad on Tuesday. The Australian batsmen also enjoyed a good outing earlier, as Glenn Maxwell (77), Cameron Green …

India defeated powerhouses South Korea to win the first archery gold of the 19th Asian Games on Wednesday before two world stars of track and field look to end their seasons with a bang. Gold medals were up for grabs on the 11th day in an overcast Hangzhou in everything from athletics and boxing to roller skating and dragon-boat racing. …

Pakistan tackle outsiders Netherlands in their opening match of the World Cup on Friday desperate to avoid a repeat of the disastrous start of four years ago which undermined their campaign. In 2019, Pakistan lost to the West Indies first up in Nottingham. Shot out for a paltry 105 in 21.4 overs, Pakistan went down by seven wickets. They eventually missed out …

As the Cricket World Cup 2023 kicks off later this week in India, the performance of batsmen on what are arguably batting-friendly pitches in the South Asian country will be a focal point during the tournament. Here, we take a look at five top batsmen in the game to watch out for. Ben Stokes (England)     The talismanic all-rounder …

The World Cup 2023 will feature several new batters and numerous bowlers across different teams, with the performance of all-rounders expected to be the highlight of the upcoming mega event set to commence later this week. Here are the five promising all-rounders to keep an eye on at the World Cup: Hardik Pandya (India)     Pandya’s aggressive batting was …

BERLIN: Injury-hit Bayern Munich travel to Copenhagen on Tuesday in the Champions League facing a depth problem which is effectively of their own making, while Carlo Ancelotti returns to his former club as Real Madrid face Napoli. Elsewhere on Tuesday, Manchester United host Galata­saray desperately needing a win while RC Lens’ will host Arsenal at a packed Stade Bollaert-Delelis, whose …

GUWAHATI: Moeen Ali smashed a quickfire half century to guide champions England to a four-wicket victory over Bangladesh in a rain-affected World Cup warm-up game here at the Barsapara Cricket Stadium on Monday. Chasing a revised target of 197 in 37 overs following a lengthy rain interruption, England were hurried along by Moeen’s blistering knock of 56 off 39 balls, …