Sports

PUNE: New Zealand captain Tom Latham hopes to summon the fighting spirit of the All Blacks when his side face fellow ICC World Cup semi-final contenders South Africa in Pune on Wednesday. The match comes just days after South Africa edged New Zealand by a point in a dramatic Rugby World Cup final in Paris, where the beaten All Blacks …

DHARAMSALA: Aus­tralia opener David Warner says his World Cup form is making doubters “look stupid” and hopes to add to his mountain of runs in the next match against ailing England. Warner, who has scored two centuries in his past three matches, is second on the runs list at the tournament with 413 at an average of 68.83, behind Quinton …

LAHORE: The five-member fact-finding committee formed by the Pakistan Cricket Board to investigate the allegations of conflict of interest regarding the role of Inzamam-ul-Haq as chief selector, with several players in the Pakistan cricket team on the roster of the same agency, held its first meeting on Tuesday where it collected details of the players’ agents approved by the PCB. …

ZURICH: Saudi Arabia is in line to host the 2034 World Cup after FIFA announced on Tuesday that the kingdom was the only bidder for the tournament. The decision, to be ratified officially at the end of the year providing all of the technical criteria are met, came after Australia decided against bidding for the 2034 men’s football World Cup, …

Pakistan opener Fakhar Zaman has no regrets about missing out on a World Cup hundred, for he knows how important it was to try and boost their net run-rate in Tuesday’s comprehensive win against Bangladesh. Pakistan began their campaign with back-to-back wins but went into the match at the Eden Gardens with their semi-final hopes hanging in balance after four defeats in …

Pakistan spearhead Shaheen Shah Afridi has become cricket’s top-ranked bowler but his prime concern is keeping the Green Shirts in the World Cup. The 23-year-old, who has 16 wickets at the tournament, has displaced Australian quick Josh Hazlewood at the top of the pile, taking the honour for the first time since making his international debut in 2018. Skipper Babar …

THE turmoil continues back home; its aftershocks threatening to further derail Pakistan’s campaign at the World Cup in India. It’s an unwelcome distraction that could’ve been put off, at least until Babar Azam’s men were well and truly out of the race for the semis. But that’s Pakistan cricket for you: a place where things unravel fast. This time, a …

ANY attempt to express political views using the platform of sports always evokes heated debate. Agreement or disagreement with the express­ed statements and gestures aside; the issue mostly divides people over the use of sport for symbolism, political or otherwise. The debate around this issue has been rekindled in the backdrop of the situation unfolding in Gaza following the events …

LUCKNOW: England captain Jos Buttler has pretty much accepted their 50-overs World Cup title defence is over but wants the team to give their best in the remaining group matches to make the cut for the 2025 Champions Trophy in Pakistan. The 2019 champions stay roo­ted to the bottom of the 10-team table after succumbing to their fifth defeat in …

PUNE: A spirited Afghanistan upset another former champion on Monday when Hashmatullah Shahidi’s men defeated 1996 winners Sri Lanka by seven wickets to continue their memorable campaign at the 50-overs World Cup and maintain their hopes of a semi-final place. Their bowlers — led by recalled left-arm fast bowler Fazalhaq Farooqi (4-34) — had laid the foundation of their third …