Mumbai, June 18 (IANS) International Master (IM) Harsh Suresh held leader, GM Iniyan Pa to a draw in the 8th round but this may be just a temporary setback, as the National champion still leads the rest of the field by a point and needs only a draw in the final round to emerge champion in the Master’s Section of the Global Chess Festival, being played at the World Trade Centre in Mumbai.The favourites fumbled and stumbled in the other two categories too. Overnight sole leader Viresh Sharnarthi, …

Doha, June 18 (IANS) Tokyo Olympic champion Neeraj Chopra has shed light on the decision to end his coaching partnership with javelin legend Jan Zelezny, revealing that the move was driven more by practicality than performance.Speaking during the Wanda Diamond League media interaction in Doha on Thursday, Chopra said that while working with the three-time Olympic champion helped him achieve the long-awaited 90-metre milestone, he eventually decided to return to a setup centred around familiarity…

Madrid, June 18 (IANS) Spanish giant Real Madrid have completed the signing of France defender Ibrahima Konate on a four-year contract, adding another major name to their squad ahead of the new season.The 27-year-old centre-back will officially join the Spanish giants at the end of June after leaving Liverpool as a free agent following the expiry of his contract at Anfield.Konate becomes Real Madrid’s third signing of the summer transfer window after the arrival of Spain left-back Marc Cucurel…

Houston, June 15 (IANS) Germany began their FIFA World Cup campaign in devastating fashion with a 7-1 demolition of Curacao on Sunday, as Felix Nmecha scored the fastest goal of the tournament so far and helped Julian Nagelsmann’s side ease to victory in their Group E opener.The four-time world champions took control from the start and got an early reward. Inside six minutes, Nmecha worked well with Florian Wirtz and curled a powerful shot into the corner. This marked the earliest goal of the to…

Birmingham, June 14 (IANS) Pakistan captain Fatima Sana admitted her side’s 64‑run loss to India in their Women’s T20 World Cup Group A game was ‘really disappointing,’ but promised the team would learn quickly and bounce back in the remainder of the tournament.In the chase of 171, Pakistan were at 52/1 at the end of power-play, but collapsed from 75 for 3 to 106 all out in 17 overs and suffered a 64-run loss to India at Edgbaston. “I think it’s really disappointing (on the batting…

Ranchi, June 14 (IANS) A rain-affected day at the Jharkhand T20 Cricket League 2026 at the JSCA International Stadium Complex saw the Jamshedpur Steelers claim two points with a hard-fought victory over the Ranchi Titans, while a persistent downpour forced Dhanbad Diamonds and Koylanchal Super Kings to split points on day five. In the opening encounter of the day, the Jamshedpur Steelers defeated the Ranchi Titans by three wickets with 13 balls to spare. Being put in to bat first, the Ranchi Tit…

Birmingham, June 14 (IANS) India captain Harmanpreet Kaur hailed the performances of Smriti Mandhana, Deepti Sharma and Richa Ghosh after her side registered a comprehensive 64‑run victory over Pakistan in their Women’s T20 World Cup opener at Edgbaston on Sunday.India had posted 170/6, as Smriti top-scored with 68, before Deepti Sharma’s 5‑10 and N Sree Charani’s 3‑21 bowled out Pakistan for 106 in 17 overs. With this, India pocketed two points and a healthy net run rate of 3.20 fro…

Birmingham, June 14 (IANS) After claiming the best bowling figures of her T20 World Cup career and earning the Player of the Match award, Deepti Sharma credited the blessings of Hanuman Ji for India’s emphatic 64-run victory over Pakistan at Edgbaston on Sunday.”All credit goes to the team and I am very grateful, Hanuman Ji is great,” Deepti said after returning sensational figures of 5/10 as India began their ICC Women’s T20 World Cup campaign in dominant fashion.The experienced off-spinner del…

Birmingham, June 14 (IANS) Deepti Sharma produced a career-best spell of 5-10 as India thrashed Pakistan by 64 runs to begin their Women’s T20 World Cup campaign in emphatic fashion at Edgbaston on Sunday. Deepti, the off-spin bowling all-rounder, was the star in weaving a vicious spin web as Pakistan collapsed from 75 for 3 to 106 all out in 17 overs. Smriti Mandhana’s fluent 68 and Richa Ghosh’s late assault of 34 had earlier carried India to 170/6 in 20 overs. Apart from Deepti, left-ar…

New Delhi, June 14 (IANS) FIFA will reportedly pay Somali referee Omar Abdulkadir Artan his full tournament fee for the 2026 FIFA World Cup despite his inability to officiate at the competition after being denied entry into the United States.According to a report by The BBC, the world governing body has decided that Artan will receive the full remuneration allocated to match officials for the tournament, ensuring he is not financially affected by the circumstances that forced him to miss the eve…