India End Sudirman Cup Campaign with 4-1 Win over Australia
Already out of the knockout race, India signed off their campaign in the Sudirman Cup badminton tournament with a 4-1 win over Australia in their final Group C tie at Suzhou Olympic Sports Centre in Suzhou, China.
Placed in the 'group of death', India had lost 1-4 to Chinese Taipei and 0-5 against Malaysia, two heavyweights of the game, to crash out of the mixed team championship.
Kami Rita Sherpa Scales Mt Everest for 27th Time, Sets New World Record
World-renowned Nepalese mountaineer Kami Rita Sherpa scaled Mt Everest for a record 27th time, beating his own record with the highest number of ascends on the world's highest peak.
He regained his title for the most climbs of Mount Everest, just three days after a fellow Sherpa guide equalled his previous record.
Pasang Dawa Sherpa, a fellow Sherpa guide, had scaled the summit of Mount Everest for the 26th time, equalling Kami Rita's previous record for the most ascents of the world's highest peak.
A resident of Solukhumbu district in eastern Nepal, Kami Rita first reached Everest on May 13, 1994.
Yarraji Wins Gold in 12.89 s
Jyothi Yarraji won the women's 100 m hurdles gold with ease and bettered her own meet record on the penultimate day of the Federation Cup Senior Athletics Championships.
Yarraji, representing Andhra Pradesh, had set a meet record (13.18 seconds) in the heats. She further improved the record to 12.89 seconds on her way to winning gold.
She also ran inside the qualification standard of 13.63 seconds set by the Athletics Federation of India for the Asian Championships to be held in Bangkok on July 12-16.
Tamil Nadu's R Nithya Ramraj was a distant second with a time of 13.44 seconds, while Sapna Kumari of Jharkhand was third with 13.58 seconds.
May 17, 2023
Toor and Annu Steal Show with Gold
Reigning Asian Games champion shot putter Tajinderpal Singh Toor and Commonwealth Games bronze medallist javelin thrower Annu Rani clinched gold medals in their respective events on the second day of the Federation Cup Senior Athletics Championships at the Birsa Munda Stadium in Ranchi, Jharkhand.
Annu produced a below-par performance as she hurled the spear to a distance of 59.24 metres but it was enough to better the qualifying standard for the upcoming Asian Championships as well as the Asian Games set by the Athletics Federation of India.
Annu, representing Uttar Pradesh, has a personal best of 63.82m. It is also the national record set by her in 2022.
Toor, an Asian record holder, threw the iron ball to a distance of 20.42 m and won the gold, though it was below his personal best of 21.49 m.
Toor, representing Punjab, bettered the Asian Championships as well as the Asian Games qualifying mark of 19 m.
Gatka Martial Art to Feature in 37th National Games
The traditional game of Gatka is set to receive a major boost on a national level as it was officially included in the 37th National Games-2023, which are scheduled to take place in Goa in October 2023. The Indian Olympic Association (IOA) will be organising competitions for a total of 43 disciplines during this national event, in collaboration with the Government of Goa.
Harjeet Singh Grewal, the President of the National Gatka Association of India (NGAI) and a State Awardee, expressed his appreciation to the IOA President, Rajya Sabha member PT Usha, and the Games Technical Conduct Committee (GTCC) Chairman, Amitabh Sharma, member Bhupiner Singh Bajwa, and other members for the inclusion of Gatka, a martial art, in the national games for the first time.
Aman, Gulveer Book Tickets to Asian Athletics Championships
Uttar Pradesh's Gulveer Singh booked his ticket to the upcoming Asian Athletics Championships by winning the men's 10,000 m gold on the opening day of the Federation Cup Senior Athletics Championships. The Asian Athletics Championships are scheduled to be held from July 12 to 16 in Bangkok. Gulveer won in a time of 29 minutes, 5.90 seconds, which was comfortably inside the Asian Championships qualifying time of 29:30. There was excitement in the men's 1500 m heat as Haryana's Aman topped his heat with a time of 3 minutes, 46.04 seconds, which was better than the Asian qualifying standard of 3:47.84.
FIH Hockey Pro League: India Names 24-member Squad for Europe Leg
Hockey India named a strong 24-member Indian Men's Hockey Team for the next leg of the FIH Men's Hockey Pro League 2022-23 in Europe starting May 26. In their previous outing in the prestigious League matches at home, India remained unbeaten against reigning World Champions Germany and Australia which helped them top the points table. In Europe, they will hope to continue their winning momentum as they take on the formidable Belgium and Great Britain in London followed by matches against the Netherlands and Argentina in Eindhoven, the Netherlands.
This will be the team's first outing under newly-appointed Chief Coach Craig Fulton while the team will continue to be led by ace drag-flicker and defender Harmanpreet Singh and vice captained by the prolific midfielder Hardik Singh.
The ICC abolished the contentious 'soft signal' by on-field officials, which had often been criticised by experts as it is believed to have created more confusion for TV umpires after a decision was referred upstairs.
The 'soft signal' was used to determine the validity of catches taken inches off the ground, which couldn't necessarily be confirmed through naked eye.
Till now the on-field umpire would either signal 'out' or 'not out' based on their gut feeling. And the third umpire was compelled to go by 'soft signal' as most of the footages proved to be inconclusive.
The ICC announced changes to the 'playing conditions' after the CEC approved the recommendations from the men's cricket committee led by Sourav Ganguly and the women's cricket committee.
The major change involved the soft signal being scrapped, with umpires no longer required to give a soft signal when referring decisions to the TV umpire. The on-field umpires will consult with the TV umpire before any decisions are taken.
The other big announcement involved making helmets mandatory for high-risk positions. Compulsory use of helmets will be for the following: when batters are facing fast bowlers, when wicketkeepers are standing up to the stumps, when fielders are close to the batter in front of the wicket.
There was also a minor addition to the free hit rule with any runs scored off a free hit when the ball hits the stumps will be counted as runs scored from now. This would mean that batters can now be bowled off a free hit and attempt a run for the same.
The changes will come into effect on June 1, 2023 with the Lord's Test between England and Ireland, a four-day one-off match.
Shubman Gill Breaks Sachin Tendulkar's Massive Record
Gujarat Titans and Team Indian opener Shubman Gill became the first to complete a unique quadruple of centuries with tons in all formats of the game apart from the Indian Premier League (IPL). Gill, who scored his maiden century in IPL 2023 match against Sunrisers Hyderabad, also scored tons in Tests, ODIs and T20s this season. Three of these centuries in T20I, Test and IPL, have come at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.
Gill en route his century, reached his 50 off just 22 balls but without a single six in the half-century. It was the fastest fifty by a batter without hitting a six, breaking the record of Sachin Tendulkar of Mumbai Indians – who achieved this feat against Delhi Daredevils (now Delhi Capitals) in IPL 2010.
Gill and Sunrisers Hyderabad pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar also became the first opposing pair to complete a century as well as five-wicket haul in the same innings in the IPL.
Vuppala Prraneeth India's 82nd Grandmaster
V. Prraneeth, a 15-year-old chess player from Telangana, achieved the title of Grandmaster, becoming the sixth from the state and the 82nd in India. He secured this milestone by defeating GM Hans Niemann from the US during the penultimate round of the Baku Open 2023. This victory also helped him surpass an Elo rating of 2500, specifically 2500.5. Prraneeth obtained his first GM-norm and the title of International Master (IM) in March 2022. He earned his second GM-norm at Biel MTO in July 2022, followed by his final GM-norm at the second Chessable Sunway Formentera Open 2023 after nine months.
May 15, 2023
Ayushmann Khurrana Joins Indian Team as Ambassador for Special Olympics Journey to Berlin
Ayushmann Khurrana was chosen to inspire and support the Indian contingent participating in the upcoming Special Olympics for individuals with intellectual disabilities, set to take place in Berlin from June 17 to June 25. Expressing gratitude, the actor considers himself lucky to have met numerous exceptional individuals throughout his journey.
Germany will host the famous event for the first time. Moreover, Ayushmann Khurrana an all-rounder actor, widely known for his socially uplifting movies, assumed the position of UNICEF's National Ambassador in February 2023.
The Special Olympics will be the 16th edition of the championship to be held in Berlin, Germany. It is an eight-day event which is scheduled to begin on June 17 and will conclude on June 25, 2023. Athletes from all over the world mark their presence on this special occasion to exhibit their talents in various sports categories.
Sherpa Guide Climbs Mount Everest for 26th Time
A Sherpa guide scaled the summit of Mount Everest for the 26th time, equalling the record set by a Nepalese guide for the most ascents of the world's highest peak. Pasang Dawa Sherpa reached the summit (8,849-m peak) along with a Hungarian climber, according to expedition organiser Imagine Nepal Treks. Dawa, who made his first successful climb in 1998, matched the record number of summits with Kami Rita Sherpa.
Shooting World Cup: Rhythm Sangwan Breaks 29-year-Old World Record
Rhythm Sangwan broke a 29-year-old world record but missed a second medal at the ISSF World Cup Rifle/Pistol in Baku, Azerbaijan, finishing eighth in the women's 25 m pistol event.
Rhythm, who won a first-ever individual senior World Cup stage medal with a bronze in the women's 10 m air pistol, shot a stunning 595 to top the 25 m pistol qualification, smashing the world record first created by Diana Iorgova of Bulgaria back in 1994 in Milan.
Rhythm in fact broke two world records on the same day as she also claimed the junior women's 25 m pistol qualification record. That went back even further, 34 years to be precise, when Russian Nino Salukvadze shot 593 at the European Championship in Zagreb. India's Manu Bhaker had equalled that effort in 2018 at the Asian Games in Jakarta.
Grant Bradburn Appointed New Head Coach of Pakistani Cricket Team
The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) confirmed Grant Bradburn's appointment as the men's national team's head coach for two years.
The board also announced that former South Africa cricketer Andrew Puttick signed a two-year-long contract as the batting coach of the men's side while strength and conditioning coach Drikus Saaiman and physiotherapist Cliffe Deacon will continue to work in their roles.
Prior to his roles in Pakistan, Bradburn, a former New Zealand cricketer, worked as the head coach of Scotland men's side.
May 13, 2023
Indian Boxers Secure Historic Three Medals at World Boxing Championships
Deepak Bhoria (51 kg), Hussamuddin (57 kg) and Nishant Dev (71 kg) created history as they assured at least a bronze medal each by reaching the semi-finals in their respective categories at the IBA Men's World Boxing Championships in Tashkent, Uzbekistan. The Indian men's boxers secured three medals for the first time in the history of the World Boxing Championships. Earlier, the best performance of the Indian men's boxers was recorded in 2019 when Manish Kaushik and Amit Panghal clinched medals for the country.
Yuzvendra Chahal Overtakes Dwayne Bravo to Become Highest Wicket-taker in IPL History
Rajasthan Royals (RR) star Yuzvendra Chahal leapfrogged Dwayne Bravo to become the highest wicket-taker in the Indian Premier League (IPL) history after he scalped his 184th wicket in the tournament history. Playing against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) at the Eden Gardens, Chahal added a feather to his already impressive career and now looks to become the first bowler to scalp 200 wickets in the IPL.
Having come into the contest with 183 wickets, the writing was on the wall for Chahal to become the highest wicket-taker in the history of the game. On the second ball of the 11th over, Chahal produced a magical delivery to force KKR skipper Nitish Rana to hand a catch to Shimron Hetmyer. With this, he leapfrogged Bravo and is also the highest wicket-taker among Indian players.
Sarabjot, Divya Get Gold at ISSF World Cup
India's Divya TS and Sarabjot Singh emerged third time lucky as a pair, winning gold in the 10m air pistol mixed team event of the ISSF World Cup.
The Indian pair, who had finished fifth in two earlier World Cup stages in Cairo and Bhopal respectively, broke through with a fine 581 to top the 55-team qualification and were assured of a medal and a spot in the gold medal match.
Up against Serbian legends Damir Mikec and Zorana Arunovic in the final, the Indians held their own to pull off a nervy 16-14 win and finish atop the podium.
It was a second World Cup gold for Sarabjot in back-to-back tournaments, having won the individual air pistol event in Bhopal in March 2023, while for Divya it was a first senior medal at this level. Ismail Keles and Simal Yilmaz of Turkey won bronze.