New Chandigarh, May 29 (IANS) Though the pacers laid the foundation for Royal Challengers Bengaluru to bowl out Punjab Kings for just 101, leg-spinner Suyash Sharma ensured the run squeeze was on in the middle overs with his incredible 3-17.The googly was Suyash’s lethal weapon on a used pitch at the Maharaja Yadavindra Singh International Cricket Stadium to take out Shashank Singh, Musheer Khan, and Marcus Stoinis in blazing fashion and ensure RCB has one foot firmly in playing the title clash on June 3 in Ahmedabad.”We executed the plans that the coaches gave us. Today I felt good (with the ball). Was feeling very good today while bowling. Felt like batters did not pick the googly. The chat was that this was a semifinal, but we would take it like a normal game. I have worked hard on my bowling. The previous game we played here helped us,” said Suyash in a mid-innings chat with the broadcasters.In last year’s mega auction, RCB picked Suyash for INR 2.6 crore, and so far, that investment has paid off with the New Delhi-based leg-spinner picking eight wickets in 13 matches at an average of 52.87 and an economy rate of 8.81.Before gaining success with RCB, Suyash had represented Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in the previous two IPL seasons. He made his IPL debut as a 19-year-old in 2023 and picked up ten wickets in 11 games. But Suyash played only two games and had wicketless returns in KKR’s victorious IPL 2024 campaign.During the 2025 edition, Suyash had revealed on RCB’s social media accounts that he was suffering from multiple hernias ahead of IPL 2025 and that the franchise had sent him to London to undergo surgery. Suyash had recalled that he was expected to play only after RCB’s three or four games, but eventually began playing for them from the tournament opener against KKR at the Eden Gardens on March 22.–IANSnr/bsk/

New Chandigarh, May 29 (IANS) Suyash Sharma and Josh Hazlewood picked stunning three-fers each as Royal Challengers Bengaluru bowled out Punjab Kings for a paltry 101 in 14.1 overs in the IPL 2025 Qualifier 1 clash at the Maharaja Yadavindra Singh International Cricket Stadium here on Thursday.Right from the toss, everything went RCB’s way, as leg-spinner Suyash and a returning Hazlewood took 3-17 and 3-21 respectively to rip apart PBKS’ batting line-up and ensure the visitors require just 102 runs to win the match and to book a direct spot in the final, set to happen on June 3.PBKS had a wobbly start as Priyansh Arya played a drive away from the body, giving a simple catch to cover off Yash Dayal. But Prabhsimran got the innings going by whipping Dayal for six, before carting Bhuvneshwar for back-to-back boundaries. Bhuvneshwar, though, had the last laugh as he found Prabhsimran’s thin edge on a short ball and was caught easily by the keeper.PBKS’ woes deepened as skipper Shreyas Iyer went for an almighty hoick off Hazlewood and gave a thick edge behind to the keeper. The pacer again struck in the last over of power-play by having Josh Inglis caught at deep fine-leg before a four and six from Marcus Stoinis ensured PBKS closed the six-over phase at 48/4.But there was no end to PBKS’ downward procession as Nehal Wadhera flattened his leg-stump after chopping on off Dayal, while Shashank Singh was castled through the gate off a googly by Suyash. Impact substitute Musheer Khan lasted only three balls, as Suyash went past his swipe across the line and trapped him LBW in front of the leg stump.Though Stoinis tried to wage a fightback, he was stopped in this pursuit by Suyash, who castled him through the gate with a googly yet again. Azmatullah Omarzai’s four and six off Suyash, along with a boundary from Kyle Jamieson, got PBKS to reach the three-figure mark, with Hazlewood bagging his three-fer when Jitesh Sharma leapt full-stretch to his right and completed a stunning grab.Brief scores:Punjab Kings 101 all out in 14.1 overs (Marcus Stoinis 26, Prabhsimran Singh 18; Suyash Sharma 3-17, Josh Hazlewood 3-21) against Royal Challengers Bengaluru–IANSnr/bsk/

Gumi (South Korea), May 29 (IANS) It was an unforgettable evening for Indian athletics at the 2025 Asian Athletics Championships as the nation clinched a flurry of medals, headlined by a historic gold from the women’s 4x400m relay team and a record-breaking performance by steeplechase star Avinash Sable.The Indian women’s 4x400m relay team broke a 12-year gold medal drought in style, clocking 3:34.18 to take the top spot on the podium. The formidable quartet of Jisna Mathew, Rupal, Rajitha Kunja, and Subha Venkatesan combined with flawless baton exchanges and gritty determination to outpace their continental rivals.This win marks a milestone in India’s track and field journey, underlining the resurgence of women’s relay teams on the Asian stage.The men’s 4x400m relay team also delivered a gutsy performance. Jay Kumar, Dharamveer Chaudhary, Manu T.S., and Vishal T.K. clocked an impressive 3:03.67 to earn silver in a tightly contested final, just missing out on gold but reinforcing India’s strength in relay events.Earlier in the evening, India’s steeplechase hero Avinash Sable scripted history by becoming the first Indian man in 36 years to win gold in the 3000m steeplechase at the Asian Championships. Clocking a season-best 8:20.92, Sable surged past Japan’s Yutaro Niinae in the final lap to seal a dominant win. Qatar’s Zakaria Elahlaami completed the podium with a personal best of 8:27.12.Adding to the medal haul, the women’s long jump saw a double podium finish for India. Ancy Sojan Edappilly bagged the silver with a leap of 6.33m, closely followed by Shaili Singh, who took bronze with a jump of 6.30m. Iran’s Reihaneh Mobini Arani clinched gold with a 6.40m effort.With five gold medals now in their tally, India’s athletes are enjoying a commanding campaign, affirming their growing dominance in Asian athletics and setting the tone for upcoming global events.Earlier, Team India successfully defended the 4x400m mixed relay title at the Asian Athletics Championships 2025. The quartet of Rupal Chaudhary, Santosh Kumar, Vishal TK and Subha Venkatesan clocked 3:18.12 to win the race and successfully defend their 4x400m mixed relay title at the Asian Athletics Championships 2025 in Gumi. –IANShs/bsk/

Pattaya (Thailand), May 29 (IANS) With another tremendous performance, Team India continued its successful run, grabbing another rich haul of 17 medals, including seven gold, on Day 2 of the 2025 Asian Indoor Rowing Championship at Pattaya, Thailand.
India, which had bagged 15 medals on the opening day, now has an overall medal tally of 32 medals — 16 gold, 8 silver, and 8 bronze, with five more days of competitions to go in this week-long event.In a continuation of their brilliant run from the opening day, winning gold medals in the Under-19 mixed 2km pair event through Gursewak Singh and Gouri Nanda; in the Masters’ mixed pair (30-39) through Aditya Ravindra Kedari and Harpreet Kaur and the PR3 PD 500 metres men with Narayana Konganapalle.Anita bagged her second medal of the regatta, adding gold to her tally by winning the women’s PR3 PD 500 metres while the country’s fifth gold of the day was bagged by Alan Joshy in the Men’s Under-19 500m and the seventh gold of the day came in Men’s Masters 50-59 lightweight 500m with Paspula Krishna Rao emerging the winner. With this, Rao won his second gold in the event.India’s medal winners on Day 2:1. Open Mixed 2km pair: Pratik Gupta & Shweta Brahmachari- Bronze medal2. Under-19 mixed 2km pair: Gursewak Singh & Gouri Nanda- Gold medal3. Masters mixed 30-39: Aditya Ravindra Kedari & Harpreet Kaur- Gold medal4. Masters mixed 50-59: Manab Dasgupta & Dr. Mridula Kulkarni- silver medal5. PR3 PD 500m men: Narayana Konganapalle- Gold medal6. PR3 PD 500m women: Anita- Gold medal7. PR3 PD 500me men: Anyatam Rajkumar- Silver medal8. Under-19 500m men: Alan Joshy- Gold medal9. Under-17 500m boys: Saksham- Gold medal10. Master men 30-39 500 meters: Aditya Ravindra Kedari- Bronze medal11. Master men 30-39 500 meters lightweight: Amit Kumar- bronze medal12. Masters’ women 30-39 500 meters lightweight: Harpreet Kaur- bronze medal13. Men’s Masters 40-49 500m: Santu Garai- bronze medal14. Masters men’s 40-49 lightweight 500 meters: Khoirom Nganba Meitei- Bronze medal15. Masters men’s 50-59 lightweight 500m: Paspula Krishna Rao- Gold medal.16. Masters’ women 50-59 500m: Dr. Mrudula Kulkarni- Bronze medal17. Masters men’s 60+ 500m: James Joseph- Silver medal.–IANSbsk/

New Chandigarh, May 29 (IANS) With Josh Hazlewood back in the Royal Challengers Bengaluru playing eleven for the Qualifier 1 clash in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 against Punjab Kings, opener Phil Salt said he is expecting the fast-bowler to begin his incredible performance from where he left off in the tournament.Hazlewood picked 18 wickets in 10 games at an average of 17.27 and an economy rate of 8.44, making him the fourth leading wicket-taker in the competition. He last featured for RCB against Delhi Capitals at the Arun Jaitley Stadium on April 27, before a shoulder niggle kept him out of the remaining games.Now for Qualifier 1, Hazlewood has come into RCB’s playing eleven in place of Nuwan Thushara, who picked 1-26 in his four overs on his franchise debut against Lucknow Super Giants on Tuesday. “As a player, this is where you want to be, it’s really exciting. Good to have Hazlewood back, hopefully he picks up from where he left off,” said Salt in a pre-match chat with broadcasters.RCB made it into the top two of the IPL points table for the first time after 2016, on the back of chasing 228 against LSG.“It was a run chase for the ages (against Lucknow Super Giants). It was a very good wicket in Lucknow. The way the middle-order came out and finished the job after we set it up was almost what you dream of while chasing a big score like that,” added Salt.RCB come into the Qualifier 1 clash with just a day’s break, and Salt feels the side is ready to put their best foot forward for a place in the title clash on June 3. “I think we have no choice but to do that.”“The way the cards have fallen for us, there’s no time for thinking about anything else than finishing the game. Need to recover, get on the plane and need to get going once again. It’s nice to get to this stage of the competition, regardless of who you are playing for,” he concluded.–IANSnr/bsk/

Gumi (South Korea), May 29 (IANS) Indian ace hurdler Jyothi Yarraji won the gold medal in the women’s 100m hurdles at the Asian Athletics Championships on Thursday. She not only defended her gold but also set a new competition record with a timing of 12.96s.
Japan’s Yumi Tanaka bagged silver ahead of China’s Wu Yanni with the slightest margin of 0.007s. Jyothi produced a late burst to continue her supremacy in the event to surpass the previous records of 13.04 seconds, achieved by Kazakhstan’s Olga Shishigina in 1998 and Sun Yawei of China in 2011.It was a double delight for India as steeplechase runner Avinash Sable also delivered a season-best performance to clinch the gold medal in the men’s 3000m steeplechase.Sable clinched the gold with a time of 8:20.92, securing his second Asian Championships medal after winning silver in 2019. While it was enough for the top spot this time, the performance fell short of his national record of 8:09.91 set in 2024.India’s wait for gold in the men’s steeplechase at the Asian Championships finally ended, marking the nation’s first top-podium finish in the event since Dina Ram’s triumph back in 1989. The milestone, however, traces back further to 1975 when Harbel Singh became the first Indian to clinch gold in the discipline.Continuing India’s golden run, Jyothi delivered a standout performance in the women’s 100m hurdles. Though she secured gold with a time of 13.09 seconds, her personal best — and the current national record — is a significantly sharper 12.78 seconds. A silver medallist at the Asian Games, Jyothi etched her name in history by becoming just the fifth athlete to successfully defend the 100m hurdles title at the Asian Championships. She now shares the honour with legends like Japan’s Emi Akimoto (1979, 1981, 1983), and China’s Zhang Yu (1991, 1993), Su Yinping (2003, 2005), and Sun Yawei (2009, 2011).Just moments before Jyothi’s golden moment, Sable, the Hangzhou Asian Games champion, lived up to expectations in the men’s 3000m steeplechase. Sable executed a well-timed surge on the final lap to overhaul Japan’s Yutaro Niinae, who had taken the lead with three laps to go. Sable crossed the finish line ahead of the Japanese runner, who clocked 8:24.41 to take silver, while Qatar’s Zakaria Elahlaami earned bronze with 8:27.12.Earlier in the day, India’s 4x400m men’s relay team delivered their best-ever performance to dominate their heat and book a spot in the final. The quartet — Rince Joseph, Dharmveer Choudhary, Manu Thekkinalil Saji, and Mohit Kumar — clocked an impressive 3:06.28, finishing ahead of China (3:06.79) and hosts South Korea (3:10.05). The Indian team will start from lane five in the final, which features strong challengers including Sri Lanka, China, and Kazakhstan. Notably, Sri Lanka enter with the season’s fastest time of 3:01.56.In the women’s 10,000m final, Sanjeevani Jadhav recorded her season’s best of 33:08.17 to finish fifth, narrowly ahead of compatriot Seema, who was sixth in 33:08.23. The race was dominated by Kazakhstan’s Daisy Jepkemei, who claimed gold with a time of 30:48.44, followed by Japan’s Ririrak Hironika (30:56.32) and Mikuni Yada (31:12.21).With two golds on Thursday, India’s medal tally currently stands at 10 with four gold, four silver and two bronze.–IANSab/

Paris, May 29 (IANS) Alexander Bublik produced one of the most remarkable comebacks of Roland-Garros 2025 so far, overturning a two-set deficit to defeat No. 9 seed Alex De Minaur 2-6, 2-6, 6-4, 6-3, 6-2 and book his place in the third round on Thursday.For much of the opening hour, it seemed like De Minaur was in complete control. The Australian looked sharp and full of energy under the clear Paris skies, racing through the first two sets with his trademark speed and discipline. Bublik, known for his unorthodox style, appeared frustrated and flat, offering little resistance as the world No. 9 dictated play from the baseline.But the match shifted suddenly and dramatically in the third set. With nothing to lose, Bublik began to loosen up. His risky shot selection started to pay off — drop shots, booming serves, and angled winners began finding their mark. The Kazakh broke De Minaur’s rhythm with a mix of flair and fearlessness, clinching the third set 6-4 to signal a turning point.From there, it was all Bublik. He dominated the fourth set with confident net play and consistent pressure on return, levelling the match at two sets apiece. De Minaur, who had looked so focused earlier, began to struggle with Bublik’s unpredictable tempo and couldn’t find answers to his opponent’s resurgence.In the final set, Bublik completed the turnaround in style. He broke twice to surge ahead, ending any hopes of a De Minaur recovery. The match finished after three hours and 14 minutes, with Bublik sealing the win on his first match point.It’s a disappointing exit for De Minaur, who had enjoyed a strong clay-court season and was looking to at least replicate his quarter-final appearance from last year. He had earlier beaten Laslo Djere in straight sets and started the second-round match in dominant fashion, but failed to respond once Bublik caught fire.Bublik, ranked No. 62, will next face Portuguese qualifier Henrique Rocha in the third round.Rocha sent another big-name packing from Roland Garros on Day 5, getting the better of Miami ATP Masters winner Jakub Mensik in five sets. The young Portuguese player, a qualifier ranked 200 in the world and making his Grand Slam main draw debut, also came back from two sets down to win in five sets.Rocha eventually won 2-6, 1-6, 6-4, 6-3, 6-3 in over three hours on Court 7.–IANShs/bsk/

Kolkata, May 29 (IANS) East Bengal FC head coach Oscar Bruzon has signed a one-year contract extension with the club on Thursday, committing his future to the club until the end of the 2025-26 season.
Under Bruzon’s stewardship, the Red & Gold Brigade topped Group A and reached the quarterfinals of the inaugural AFC Challenge League last season. Since taking charge midway through the season, the Spanish tactician led East Bengal to its highest points tally (28) in the IndianSuper League season, despite the club’s poor start to the campaign.Commenting on his extension, Bruzon said, “I am thrilled to extend my journey with East Bengal FC for the upcoming season. While the previous season presented challenges, particularly after a slow start, we have collectively learned from those experiences and are now fully focused on reigniting the winning mentality that defines this great club. Our loyalsupporters deserve nothing less than a team that reflects their passion, resilience and unwavering belief in East Bengal’s legacy.”Fully supportive of Bruzon’s vision, Vibhash Vardhan Agarwal of Emami Group said, “Coach Oscar has brought a renewed sense of purpose to the team. His dedication to our vision of challenging for titles and ability to inspire both players and fans make him the ideal leader for our club’s future.”Previously, Bruzon was the most successful coach in the Bangladesh Premier League history, having led Bashundhara Kings to an astounding 94 wins in 114 matches, with a 2.59 points per match ratio. During this period (2018 – 2024), he lost only 7 matches while drawing 13.Under Bruzon’s reign, Bashundhara Kings won five consecutive Bangladesh Premier League, three Independence Cup and three Federation Cup titles. Besides, in the Bangladesh Premier League, Bashundhara Kings scored 277 goals while conceding only 80 in 114 matches under Bruzon’s tutelage. Bruzon was also appointed as Bangladesh’s interim head coach in 2021.–IANSab/

New Chandigarh, May 29 (IANS) Josh Hazlewood comes back into the Royal Challengers Bengaluru playing eleven as regular skipper Rajat Patidar won the toss and elected to bowl first against Punjab Kings in Qualifier 1 of Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 at the Maharaja Yadavindra Singh International Cricket Stadium on Thursday.The winner of Qualifier 1 will storm into the final, to be held at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on June 3, while the losing side will have another crack at entering the title clash through the Qualifier 2 game at the same venue on Sunday.PBKS, the league stage table toppers, are playing an IPL playoffs game for the first time after 11 years. The last time these two teams met at his venue, RCB won the match. What also comes as a big boost for RCB is Patidar back to captaining them after a finger injury meant Jitesh Sharma became stand-in skipper for their remaining league games, as well as Hazlewood being available for the crunch game after overcoming a shoulder niggle.After winning the toss, Patidar said, “Wicket looks very hard, decent covering of grass, and will try to maximise the first few overs. Everyone gave more than 100 percent in the last game, Jitesh, Salt, and Kohli they were tremendous, though there are a few niggles,” he said.PBKS skipper Shreyas Iyer said Marco Jansen goes out due to him joining the South Africa camp for next month’s World Test Championship Final, which in turn has paved the way for Azmatullah Omarzai to take his place in the playing eleven. Leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal continues to be on the sideline due to a niggle in his right wrist.“Would have bowled first as well. If you look at the record here, teams batting first have done well, so I am optimistic. They (the crowd) have been tremendous, and you need such a kind of vibration when you enter the ground, and it gives us a lot of energy as well. The way they (openers) have been showing the fearless approach and the attitude has been brilliant,” he said.The square boundaries at the venue stand at 62m and 65m respectively, while the straight down the ground boundary stands at 73m. The pitch for Thursday’s match was used twice before in the ongoing season. The night games at this venue have been won by teams batting first.Playing XIs:Punjab Kings: Priyansh Arya, Prabhsimran Singh, Josh Inglis (wk), Shreyas Iyer (captain), Nehal Wadhera, Shashank Singh, Marcus Stoinis, Azmatullah Omarzai, Harpreet Brar, Arshdeep Singh, and Kyle JamiesonImpact substitutes: Vijaykumar Vyshak, Praveen Dubey, Suryansh Shedge, Musheer Khan, and Xavier Bartlet.Royal Challengers Bengaluru: Virat Kohli, Philip Salt, Rajat Patidar (captain), Liam Livingstone, Jitesh Sharma (wk), Romario Shepherd, Krunal Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Yash Dayal, Josh Hazlewood, and Suyash SharmaImpact substitutes: Mayank Agarawal, Rasikh Salam, Manoj Bhandage, Tim Seifert, and Swapnil Singh–IANSnr/bsk/

Paris, May 29 (IANS) Jessica Pegula led the American charge at Roland Garros on Thursday with a hard-fought 6-3, 7-6(3) win over compatriot Ann Li, marking her 30th match victory of the season. It was a determined performance from the world No. 3, who held her nerve in a tense second set to reach the third round of the French Open for the third time in her career.The 31-year-old broke Li three times and saved six of seven break points in a contest that began with Li racing to a 2-0 lead in the first set. But Pegula quickly wrestled back control, showcasing her trademark baseline consistency and mental resilience. After levelling the score, she dictated terms from the back of the court and stormed through six of the next seven games to seal the set.The second set was a different battle altogether. There were no breaks of serve through the first eight games, and Li, ranked 55th in the world, had two golden opportunities to break at 4-4. But Pegula responded like a seasoned champion—first with a breathtaking running forehand down the line, and then with a powerful serve that set up a clear winner.In the tiebreak, Pegula’s composure was evident. A wide backhand from Li gave her the early advantage, and she closed the match with a smooth backhand volley at the net.Pegula’s win is part of a broader resurgence for American women at Roland Garros. With Coco Gauff seeded No. 2 and Madison Keys also advancing, it marks the first time since the era of Venus and Serena Williams in 2009 that the U.S. has three women in the top 10 seeds.Notably, nine American women featured in the second-round matches from the bottom half of the draw—a rare and significant presence on the Parisian clay.Up next, Pegula faces former Roland Garros finalist and 2023 Wimbledon champion Marketa Vondrousova, who edged past No. 25 Magdalena Frech in three sets. It will be a stern test, but Pegula enters the contest high on confidence, having won more matches this season than any WTA player outside of Aryna Sabalenka.–IANShs/bsk/