Sports

VISAKHAPATNAM: India will bank on a traditional approach to bounce back in their second home Test against England, the team’s batting coach said on Wednesday, despite the tourists finding success with their attacking “Bazball” strategy. England trumped the hosts to lead the five-match series 1-0, with the action shifting to Visakhapatnam starting on Friday on a pitch expected to turn …

DOHA: Four-time champions Japan eased into the quarter-finals of the Asian Cup with a clinical 3-1 victory over Bahrain on Wednesday at Al Thumama Stadium with goals from Ritsu Doan, Takefusa Kubo and Ayase Ueda. Bahrain coach Juan Anotnio Pizzi had been looking to heal old wounds after his Saudi Arabia team lost to Japan at the same stage in …

KORHOGO: Morocco became the latest giants to be toppled at a shock-filled Africa Cup of Nations when they fell 2-0 to South Africa on Tuesday, while Mali also booked a quarter-finals place. Evidence Makgopa and Teboho Mokoena scored in the second half for Bafana Bafana, who once again proved a bogey team for the Atlas Lions, whose Achraf Hakimi missed …

Ben Stokes’ England side could go with an all-spin bowling attack against an inexperienced India batting line-up when the second Test begins in Visakhapatnam on Friday. Rohit Sharma’s side suffered only their fourth home defeat in 47 Tests since 2013 last week in Hyderabad as England came from 190 runs behind on the first innings to record a stunning 28-run …

English midfielder Jude Bellingham has been on a roll since joining Spanish club Real Madrid last year, courtesy of his exceptional on-field prowess. Not only on-field, the Real Madrid star has been winning hearts off the field as well with his respectable gestures towards his fans. In one of those gestures, Bellingham recently responded to a Pakistani Sameer Shoukat, who …

Sri Lanka have named a 16-member Test squad on Wednesday for their one-off match against Afghanistan, scheduled to begin on Friday in Colombo. This will be Sri Lanka’s first assignment under the new Test captain Dhananjaya de Silva, after they appointed different captains for the Test, ODI and T20 sides earlier this month. Upul Tharanga, the newly appointed chief of Sri …

DUBAI: Indian pace bowler Jasprit Bumrah surged to the fourth position and closed the gap with top-ranked fellow Indian spinner Ravichandran Ashwin in the latest International Cricket Council (ICC) Men’s Test Bowling Rankings. Bumrah jumped four places to acquire the fourth spot with 825 points after taking six wickets in the thrilling first Test against England in Hyderabad, which India …

Atletico Madrid confirmed the signing of Brazilian defender c from Valencia on Wednesday until the end of the season. Valencia announced through a statement that the 33-year-old centre-back had “reached a deal to end his contract” with the club. “Valencia CF and Gabriel Paulista have reached an agreement to terminate the player’s contract,” the statement said. “Gabriel Paulista has worn …

RIYADH: Luis Suarez bagged his maiden goal for Inter Miami and Lionel Messi scored a penalty but it was not enough to stop the Major League Soccer side falling to a 4-3 defeat against Saudi Pro League side Al Hilal here on Monday. An 88th-minute header from Brazilian forward Malcom settled an entertaining friendly at the Kingdom Arena after Miami …

Former captain Shahid Afridi has backed former team-mate Mohammad Hafeez and stated that he should be given more time in his role as Pakistan’s team director. While speaking to the media on Tuesday during a private ceremony, Afridi asserted his weight behind Hafeez saying that he cannot change things overnight. “[Mohammad] Hafeez has played a lot of cricket, he should …