Sports

Rain stopped play in the Indian Premier League match between Royal Challengers Bengaluru and Punjab Kings in Dharamsala on Thursday.

Batting first, RCB were 119/3 in 10 overs when the heavens opened up. Virat Kohli was going strong on 42 off 23 balls, while Cameron Green had just walked in at the fall of Rajat Patidar. Patidar made 55 in 23 balls.

Punjab Kings won the toss and opted to bowl first.

Wrestling's world governing body UWW has suspended Bajrang Punia till the end of this year following NADA's decision to hand him a provisional suspension for refusing to undergo a dope test.

However, in a rather surprising decision, the Sports Authority of India (SAI) sanctioned close to Rs nine lakh for his training abroad despite being well aware of NADA's order. Bajrang, one of the country's most successful wrestlers, was suspended by NADA on April 23 after being served a whereabouts failure notice on April 18.

In his defence, the Tokyo Olympics bronze-medallist said he never refused to give his sample for testing but merely asked the Dope Control Officer to explain the presence of expired kits which were brought to take his sample.

Bajrang told PTI that he has not received any communication from the UWW about his suspension but the world governing body while updating its internal system clearly mentions that he stands suspended. "Suspended for the following reason until Dec 31, 2024," reads the update on Bajrang's profile.

"Provisionally suspended by NADO IND for alleged ADRV (Anti-Doping Rule Violation)," was the reason mentioned.

Interestingly, the Mission Olympic Cell (MOC), in its April 25 meeting, was informed that Bajrang has been sanctioned Rs 8,82,000 plus air fare (actual) for his proposal to train at Dagestan, Russia from May 28. Bajrang's initial proposal was for a 35-day training trip from April 24 but, as per the minutes of MOC meeting, due to "conflicting travel dates due to his whereabouts failure, he chose to defer the travel plans from 24th April, 2024 to 28th May, 2024."

The proposal also included travel plans of his strength and conditioning coach Kaazi Kiron Mustafa Hasan and his sparring partner Jitender. Neither Sandip Pradhan, the SAI Director General, nor Col. Rakesh Yadav, joint CEO TOPS, responded to calls or messages, when PTI reached out for an explanation for the decision to sanction his training.

Bajrang confirmed that he had given a proposal for approval to SAI.

"I am also surprised that SAI cleared it. I have actually cancelled my plan, I am not going anywhere for training now," Bajrang said, adding that his lawyer has filed the reply to NADA.

Despite being hit by the absence of key bowlers due to injuries and international commitments, Chennai Super Kings will still like to display their on-field ruthlessness while taking on wooden spooners Gujarat Titans in a 12th round IPL encounter in Ahmedabad on Friday.

Caught in a mid-table logjam with 12 points from 11 games, the away match against Gujarat will be very important for Ruturaj Gaikwad's men as they are still not assured of a play-off berth and a defeat could really dent their chances. With Deepak Chahar and Matheesha Pathirana out of the tournament due to injuries and Mustafizur Rahman back on national duty, CSK's bowling attack sans Ravindra Jadeja and Tushar Deshpande can at best be termed second string.

A lot will depend on how the three CSK spinners - Ravindra Jadeja, Mitchell Santner and Moeen Ali bowl on a two-paced track.

Yet, the way CSK defended a total of 167 in Dharamsala against Punjab Kings will give their fans hope of upping the ante against Titans, who have already lost seven in the tournament so far. A win will take them to third place in the standings, ahead of Sunrisers Hyderbad by virtue of better net run-rate. 

Among the three teams stuck on 12 points, only CSK (+0.700) enjoys a positive net run-rate.

On paper, bottom-placed Titans are still in the mix but with a maximum tally of 14 points, it would be very difficult for the Shubman Gill-led side to get into the top four. The side is low on confidence having managed just one win from their last five matches and has struggled in all departments of the game.

Their bowling has lost firepower in the absence of the injured Mohammed Shami, while the captaincy responsibility has weighed down heavily on the talented opener Gill, who has three single-digit scores and a highest of 35 in his last five outings.

Sai Sudharsan, Shahrukh Khan and David Miller have also been inconsistent. The bowling unit needs to improve its performance as the likes of Mohit Sharma and Josh Little have been leaking runs in the Powerplay.

While defending a paltry 147, their bowlers gave away 92 runs in the Powerplay against RCB, who chased down the target in just 13.4 overs.

With no support from the new ball bowlers, the Afghan spin duo of Noor Ahmad and Rashid Khan also seemed less effective. CSK, on the other hand, have no such concerns with skipper Ruturaj Gaikwad leading by example.

He has been their top run-getter with 541 runs from 11 innings, just one run away from Virat Kohli in the race for the Orange Cap.

Daryl Mitchell was also among runs in a 19-ball 30 against PBKS in their last match as they would just hope that Shivam Dube returns to form after capping successive golden ducks. Their biggest plus in the win over PBKS has been the addition of Simarjeet Singh.

Making his debut for CSK as an impact player, Simarjeet clocked 140-plus consistently and returned with 2/16 from his three overs.

The match starts at 7.30 pm.

All but out of contention for the IPL play-offs, K L Rahul’s future as Lucknow Super Giants skipper is uncertain for the remaining two games after the team received a pasting at the hands of Sunrisers Hyderabad at home on Wednesday.

It is a foregone conclusion that the LSG skipper, who was roped in before the auction in 2022 for a record Rs 17 crore, is unlikely to be retained before the mega auctions in 2025.  However, there is speculation that the skipper might step down on his own and concentrate on batting during the next two games.

“There is a five-day gap before the next game against DC. As of now, no decision has been taken but it is understood that if Rahul plans to just concentrate on his batting for the remaining two games, the management won't mind,” an IPL source told PTI on conditions of anonymity.

Videos of LSG owner Sanjiv Goenka's agitated conversation with Rahul emerged on social media after Sunrisers Hyderabad openers Travis Head (89 not out off 30 balls) and Abhishek Sharma (75 off 28 balls) reached a target of 167 in less than 10 overs. This was after the home team batters struggled to get going on the same track.

Worse, Rahul's (29 off 33 balls) batting in the Powerplay has been one of the biggest reasons for LSG's below-par show in the cash-rich league and it seems that Goenka has finally run out of patience. The India star has scored 460 runs in 12 games and could again cross the 500-run mark for the season but it is his strike-rate of 136.09 which is the problem.

LSG are still mathematically in contention as they can reach 16 points by winning their remaining two games - vs Delhi Capitals in New Delhi on May 14 and vs Mumbai Indians at Wankhede on May 17.

However, it will be very difficult to massively improve upon the net run-rate (-0.760). In case, Rahul decides to step down, vice-captain Nicholas Pooran, easily the team's most impactful batter in the season, is likely to take over for the remaining two games.

Manika Batra has become the first Indian woman table tennis player to enter the quarterfinals of an elite WTT event following her victory over world number 14 Nina Mittelham at the Grand Smash event in Jeddah.

After stunning world number two Wang Manyu in the second round, Batra extended her red hot form in Saudi Arabia with a 11-6 11-9 11-7 win over her German rival in just 22 minutes on Wednesday. It was Batra's first win over Mittelham in four attempts and now she will face another formidable rival in world number five Hina Hayata of Japan on Thursday evening.

The Indian will be backing herself to put it past Hayata as she had upset the Japanese to win a historic bronze in the Asia Cup back in 2022.

"I'm feeling really proud with myself that I played my best game today after beating Wang Manyu. That match was really important to me and I was happy and excited so I had to keep myself calm for this match," said the 28-year-old Batra. "Everything is going right here. Everything in my room, in my practice session, in my match; so I think I love this country! This is my first quarterfinals in a Smash so I’m really thankful to everyone that was there to cheer and my practice partner for coaching me and my coach in India," she added.

Batra, who is currently ranked 39, is set to break into the top-25 following a memorable week here.

Batra had shocked China's Wang on Monday after getting past Romania's Andreea Dragoman in the first round, her first win at a Grand Smash event.

Marking a significant milestone in the lead-up to the Games in Paris, scores of people gathered in the southern French city of Marseille to welcome the Olympic torch. 

Olympic gold medal-winning swimmer Florent Manaudou carried the torch from the deck of the Belem, a three-masted vessel that carried it from Greece, reports ‘Le Monde’. 

According to ‘BBC’, the Olympic flame relay will begin from the Mediterranean coastal city and travel around France and to six overseas territories before arriving in Paris for the opening ceremony on July 26. President Emmanuel Macron met the French Olympic athletes who sailed on Belem with the Olympic torch. 

“With the arrival of the flame, the country enters the games,” Macron said, the ‘Le Monde’ report added. 

The opening ceremony is likely to witness over 10,000 athletes sail along a stretch of the River Seine.

The remorseless domination of Travis Head and Abhishek Sharma, who carved lightning fast fifties, helped Sunrisers Hyderabad mount the fastest chase of a 160-plus target en route their convincing 10-wicket win over Lucknow Super Giants in the IPL match in Hyderabad on Wednesday.

Chasing a modest target of 166, Head (89 not out, 30 balls, 8x4, 8x6) and Sharma (75 not out, 28 balls, 8x4, 6x6) toyed with LSG bowlers, finding boundaries and sixes at will to canter home in just 9.4 overs. The win propelled SRH to the third position in the standings with 14 points from 12 games, while LSG are struggling at the sixth spot with 12 points from the same number of matches.

The result also meant that five-time champions Mumbai Indians, currently ninth with eight points from 12 matches, are out of the play-off race. The dance of destruction by Head and Sharma even left the legendary Sachin Tendulkar gushing.

"A destructive opening partnership would be an understatement tonight. Had these boys batted first, they would’ve scored 300," Tendulkar wrote in his X account.

The Head and Sharma show came after SRH bowlers started brilliantly before losing the plot a bit. Ayush Badoni (55 not out off 30 balls) and Nicholas Pooran (48 not out off 25 balls) stitched crucial 95-runs off 55 balls for the unbeaten fifth-wicket stand to guide LSG to a competitive 165 for four on a sluggish pitch.

But Head and Sharma took any hint of competition out of the match once they bludgeoned 107 runs in the Power Play. It was an awesome hitting display from the Indo-Australian pair as they didn't spare a single LSG bowler, clobbering them to all parts of the ground.

Brief Score: Sunrisers Hyderabad 167 for 0 (Head 89*, Abhishek 75*) beat Lucknow Super Giants 165 for 4 (Badoni 55*, Pooran 48*, Bhuvneshwar 2-12) by ten wickets

There has been no beginner’s luck for MumbaI Indians’ captain Hardik Pandya, who replaced Rohit Sharma as the skipper, with the five-time champions becoming the first team to get eliminated from the race for Play-Offs spot in this year’s Indian Premier League.

The Mumbai Indians, who are placed ninth on the points table, saw their hopes disappear as Sunrisers Hyderabad defeated Lucknow Super Giants by 10 wickets in Hyderabad on Wednesday. Having won only four of their 12 matches so far and losing eight, Mumbai Indians have two more matches left, against Kolkata Knight Riders and Lucknow Super Giants, and even if they win both these matches, they will still have only 12 points against their name. whereas the tenth-placed Gujarat Titans, who have three more games in hand, will make it to 14 points if they win their remaining matches.

Mumbai Indians have had a rather forgettable season, not only for their dismal performance on the field, but off it as well for the way the team management handled the change in captaincy. Fans were angered by the way Rohit, who led the team to five titles, was rather unceremoniously removed as the captain ahead of the season and replaced by Hardik, who was traded in from Gujarat Titans. This led fans to boo the new captain in the stadiums and the team’s subsequent poor showing only added to this.