Sports

NOTTINGHAM: Batters on both sides are set to face a stiff examination when an England side missing Ben Stokes takes on India in the first Test at Trent Bridge in Nottingham starting on Wednesday. Although England captain Joe Root boasts an impressive Test average of 48.68, the next best in his side belongs to opener Rory Burns, with 33.23. Zak …

LAHORE: Ahsan Ramzan displayed an excellent show of power to claim first SGL Under-17 National Snooker Championship title with a crushing 5-2 victory over Hamza Ilyas 5-2 in an all-Punjab final at the Pakistan Sports Board Coaching and Training Centre here on Tuesday. Ahsan also qualified for the World Under-17 Championship at Qatar in December after clinching the best-of-nine decider …

Arshad Nadeem on Wednesday kept Pakistan’s hopes of its maiden medal at Tokyo Olympics alive as he went through to the final of the men’s javelin with a throw of 85.16 metres. The feat made him the first Pakistani to qualify for the final of any track and field event at the Olympics. Nadeem’s throw was third-best of the day …

TOKYO: Jamaica’s Elaine Thompson-Herah made history with the first women’s Olympic sprint “double-double” on Tuesday, as superstar gymnast Simone Biles stared down the dreaded “twisties” to bravely win bronze on a day that saw world records smashed and organisers investigate Belarus’ treatment of an athlete now in diplomatic protection. Thompson-Herah’s blistering 200 metres win, following her brilliant 100m victory, made …

GEORGETOWN: Pakistan maintained their winning streak over the West Indies as rain had the final say yet again with the scheduled final encounter of the four-match Twenty20 International series abandoned as a no-result at the Providence Stadium in Guyana on Tuesday. Just one of the scheduled matches reached a conclusion on the field of play with the tourists defeating the …

Pakistanis were all praises for Arshad Nadeem on Wednesday after he went through to the final of the men’s javelin at the Tokyo Olympics with a throw of 85.16 metres. Nadeem’s throw was third-best of the day behind India’s Neeraj Chopra (86.65m) and world leader Germany’s Johannes Vetter (85.64m). The 24-year-old thrower from Khanewal finished above Germany’s Julian Weber and Czech’s Jakub …

TOKYO: Denmark’s Viktor Axelsen swept the men’s singles Olympic gold medal on Monday, unseating Chen Long of China who claimed the title at the Rio 2016 Olympics. Axelsen and Chen, two of the world’s most brutal smashers, ended their match 21-15, 21-12 after nearly an hour of flash shots and mesmerising rallies. Afterwards, Chen embraced and spoke in Chinese with …

The Pakistan Football Federation (PFF) has signed a partnership with Global Soccer Ventures (GSV) to kick off the country’s first-ever football league, the Pakistan Football League (PFL), and upgrade the infrastructure for the sport in the country, according to a press release issued on Tuesday. The statement noted that apart from delivering Pakistan’s first domestic inter-city franchise league, the new …

TOKYO: Britain’s Oliver Townend, Laura Collett and Tom McEwen on Monday won Olympic team gold in equestrian eventing, bringing the top medal back to Britain after decades of the country coming second, while Germany’s Julia Krajewski won individual gold. Australia claimed the silver medal, improving on their third place in Rio 2016, and defending champions France took bronze. Britain’s Tom …

TOKYO: Britain beat Spain in a penalty shootout to secure the last semi-final spot in the women’s Olympic hockey tournament on Monday, joining India, Argentina and the Netherlands in the last four. After a tense 2-2 draw in regular time, Britain won the game by scoring two shootout goals, while Spain missed four times thanks to a superb performance by …