Sports

CSK ropes in Dwayne Bravo as bowling coach ahead of 2023 IPL

Chennai: Legendary West Indies all-rounder Dwayne Bravo has been appointed as the bowling coach of IPL franchise Chennai Super Kings ahead of the 2023 season. Bravo has called time on his playing days in the IPL, having played for CSK since the tournament's inception in...

Germany's World Cup survival on the line against Spain Doha: When the World Cup draw came out in April, one of the highlights of the group stage was Sunday's Spain vs Germany at Al Bayt Stadium. Eight months later, the game between the two former world champions and pre-tournament favorites gained even more prominence thanks to Germany's surprising loss to Japan in its opener in Qatar. Another setback against Spain this weekend and Germany may be heading home early for the second straight World Cup. A loss — coupled with at least a draw by Japan against Costa Rica earlier Sunday — will mean elimination for the four-time champions. Spain, meanwhile, will be looking to secure its spot in the next stage and reinforce its status as one of the top title contenders following an impressive 7-0 rout of Costa Rica in its opener. The signs are not encouraging for Germany. Its most recent match against Spain was an embarrassing 6-0 defeat in the Nations League two years ago. Its last win against "La Roja" came in a friendly eight years ago. Germany won its fourth World Cup title in 2014 in Brazil but didn't make it out of the group stage in 2018 after losses to South Korea and México. It would be the first time it fails to advance past the group stage in back-to-back tournaments. Spain won its lone World Cup in 2010 in South Africa and was eliminated in the round of 16 in 2018 in Russia. A win against Germany will allow Spain to reach the last 16 if Costa Rica doesn't defeat Japan. Expectations around Spain's young squad were raised after its outstanding performance against Costa Rica, when the team reintroduced "tiki-taka" ball-possession style and 18-year-old Gavi became the youngest World Cup scorer since Pelé in 1958. The seven goals it scored against Costa Rica matched Spain's tournament total from Russia in 2018. "The result gives us a big boost," Spain coach Luis Enrique said. "But now we have to play against a Germany team that needs the victory." Luis Enrique said he wasn't concerned with his young players being overly confident, and promised to make changes to the starting lineup for Sunday's match, without elaborating. Winger Leroy Sané could return for Germany after missing the match against Japan because of a knee injury. It will be the fifth meeting between the powerhouses at World Cups, with Spain winning the most recent one 1-0 in the semifinals of the 2010 tournament. Spain hasn't lost to Germany in official competitions since the 1988 European Championship, with two draws and three wins since then. The Germans have lost three of their last four World Cup matches dating to the tournament in Russia. They made headlines even before kickoff against Japan by covering their mouths to protest FIFA's clampdown on the "One Love" armbands. It was not clear if they would repeat the gesture before the Spain match. AP FIFA, football, World Cup, Germany, Spain

Brazil rotates squad, Cameroon fights for World Cup survival

4 years ago

Doha: Still without Neymar and already secured in the round of 16, Brazil will use its last group game at the World Cup to give playing time to its reserves. Coach Tite was expected to make changes in every position for Brazil's match against Cameroon...

Ben Stokes keeps door open for ODI World Cup return in India: Reports

4 years ago

Rawalpindi: Star all-rounder Ben Stokes has not ruled out the possibility of coming out of ODI retirement for England's title defence of the 50-over World Cup in India next year. The 31-year-old England Test captain had announced retirement from ODIs in July, citing pressure on...

Shreyas Iyer, Shubman Gill make gains in ODI player rankings

4 years ago

Dubai: Indian batters Shreyas Iyer and Shubman Gill were rewarded for their superb show in the three-match ODI series against New Zealand in the latest ICC player rankings issued Wednesday. Iyer and Gill jumped six and three places to climb to No.27 and No.34 spot,...

New Zealand win series against India after rain washes out final ODI

4 years ago

Christchurch: A sloppy India lost the three-match ODI series against New Zealand 0-1 after rain washed out the third and final game here Wednesday. Chasing 220, New Zealand were cruising at 104/1 in 18 overs, 50 runs ahead of the Duckworth-Lewis par score, when rain...

Yuvraj Singh’s name crossed my mind after fifth six: Ruturaj Gaikwad

4 years ago

New Delhi: Ruturaj Gaikwad was the talk of town after his astonishing seven sixes in a 43-run over during a Vijay Hazare Trophy quarterfinal. But the only name that crossed the 25-year-old batter's mind even before he had pulled off the unthinkable feat was that...

Mexico faces early World Cup exit against Saudi Arabia

4 years ago

Doha: Mexico is going to have to suddenly find goals — and perhaps even several of them — to extend its knockout-round streak at the World Cup. Mexico has reached the round of 16 at the last seven World Cups, tied for the longest current...

BCCI serves conflict of interest notice to its president

4 years ago

New Delhi: BCCI ethics officer Vineet Saran has served a conflict of interest notice to board president Roger Binny. PTI has learnt that Saran has asked Binny to file a written response by December 20 against the conflict of interest allegations levelled against him. The...

There are no cowards in Australian team: Cummins hits back at Langer

4 years ago

Perth: Test captain Pat Cummins Tuesday strongly hit back at former coach Justin Langer, saying there are "no cowards" in the Australian team and added that his unsavoury comments won't distract them ahead of their Test series against West Indies. Last week, Langer had lasted...

Ronaldo denied goal, Portugal beats Uruguay 2-0 in World Cup

4 years ago

Lusail (Qatar): Cristiano Ronaldo thought he scored but the goal was eventually credited to Bruno Fernandes in Portugal's 2-0 win over Uruguay Monday, a result that secured the team a place in the last 16 of the World Cup. Fernandes curled in a cross from...