Sports

Cristiano Ronaldo scored twice as Portugal edged a 3-2 thriller against Slovakia in Porto on Friday to book their place at Euro 2024.  Ronaldo scored a first-half penalty and a second-half tap-in as the Portuguese made it seven wins from seven matches in Group J. They have 21 points which ensures them a top-two finish. “Cristiano Ronaldo is having a …

Former wicketkeeper batter Kamran Akmal caught attention with his statements about the Pakistan team ahead of the high-octane ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 fixture against arch-rivals India at Ahmedabad’s Narendra Modi Stadium. Pakistan and India, who are unbeaten in the tournament, will go head to head against each other for the eighth time in the hisory of the 50-over World …

CHENNAI: Kane Williamson said the legacy of the All Blacks inspires New Zealand’s cricketers as he prepares to return from a long injury layoff to captain the team at the ICC World Cup. New Zealand have won their opening two matches of the mega event in India in the absence of their skipper, who injured his knee while playing in …

NEW DELHI: India’s eight-wicket victory over Afghanistan came with 15 overs to spare but pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah denied it was a planned ploy to boost their net run-rate in the World Cup group stage. Indian captain Rohit Sharma smashed 131 off 84 balls as the tournament hosts chased down a 273-run victory target in 35 overs on a good batting track …

PHNOM PENH: A draw that felt like a win. This was what Stephen Constantine was brought in for, and the Englishman is halfway towards helping Pakistan create history. Pakistan produced a gritty defensive performance to hold Cambodia to a goalless stalemate in the opening leg of their first-round qualifier for the 2026 FIFA World Cup at the National Olympic Stadium …

Buoyed by a record run chase, Pakistan are on the hunt for their first ever World Cup win over India in Saturday’s blockbuster match between cricket’s biggest rivals in a 132,000-capacity arena patrolled by 11,000 police officers. India and Pakistan are bitter adversaries and only play against each other in international tournaments due to longstanding political tensions. Any meeting between …

It takes a foolish, foolish man to predict Pakistan’s results. I can therefore say with complete confidence that the Men in Green go into this game against India with the lowest chance they have ever had in this clash’s storied history. Babar Azam’s men will not be short of motivation — as if you ever can be in this game …

Cricket’s more than 100-year Olympic exile moved closer to ending after the sport was approved for inclusion at the 2028 Los Angeles Games by the International Olympic Committee’s executive board. IOC president Thomas Bach, speaking after Friday’s second day of an executive board meeting in Mumbai, said officials had accepted a proposal by LA organisers for Twenty20 cricket to be …

Defiant Pakistan captain Babar Azam declared on Friday that “records are meant to be broken” as his team looks to break free of India’s World Cup stranglehold when the bitter rivals clash on Saturday. India boast a 7-0 record over their neighbours in World Cups despite Pakistan having a healthy 73-56 overall advantage since their first one-day international clash back in 1978. …

PHNOM PENH: The mo­m­ent of truth has arri­ved. For the last 15 months, since the FIFA suspension on Pakistan was lifted, everything was built with Thursday’s game in mind. It’s been a rocky road for Pakistan heading into the opening leg of their 2026 World Cup qualifying first-round tie against Camb­odia. Shehzad Anwar, the coach who was tasked to take …