Sports

Lucknow, Nov 6: The Uttar Pradesh government on Monday rechristened the newly-built Ekana International Cricket Stadium in Lucknow in honour of former prime minister late Atal Bihari Vajpayee. The proposal to rename the stadium was approved by Uttar Pradesh Governor Ram Naik. The official name of the cricket ground, which is set to host the second T20I of the ongoing three-match series between

New Delhi, Nov 5: Virat Kohli Monday turned 30 at the country's Devbhoomi and the cricket community celebrated its festival of festivals with gusto, showering accolades while wishing the man who is fast attaining the status of a deity. A batsman par excellence with a plethora of records to his name, Kohli is spending his birthday with wife Anushka Sharma in Haridwar. It began with the legendary

Perth, Nov 4: South Africa hammered Australia by six wickets in the first one-day international in Perth on Sunday, with a Dale Steyn-led pace onslaught exposing their batting frailties. Set 153 to win, Proteas' openers Quinton de Kock (47) and Reeza Hendricks (44) helped secure victory with 124 balls to spare, leaving Australia with plenty to ponder ahead of the second of the three-game series in

Kolkata, Nov 5: India defeated West Indies by five wickets in the first T20 International here Sunday. Sent into bat, West Indies were restricted to 109 for eight and India chased down the target of 110 in 17.5 overs at the Eden Gardens. India lead the three-match series 1-0. Brief scores: West Indies: 109/8 in 20 overs (Fabian Allen 27; Kuldeep Yadav 3/13) India: 110/5 in 17.5 overs (Dinesh

Nov 4: Raj Kumar Sharma, the childhood coach of Indian skipper Virat Kohli, on Saturday asserted that he doesn`t want a comparison between former Indian batsman Sachin Tendulkar and his protege. "I don`t want to make any comparison. Sachin was a great batsman and has many records to his name. But the way Virat has shown consistency in all three formats is a big achievement. Sachin was Virat`s idol

New Delhi, Nov 4: India's ODI specialist Ambati Rayudu announced his retirement from first-class cricket to focus on ODIs and T20s. The 33-year-old Rayudu is one of the key members of the Indian ODI side but has never played Test cricket. "This is to inform that Ambati Rayudu, Hyderabad captain and member of the India ODI team, has decided to retire from the longer version of the game including

New Delhi, Nov 4: Virender Sehwag on Saturday announced that he will not be part of the Kings XI Punjab dressing room next IPL after mentoring the team in the previous three seasons. Sehwag's future at KXIP became unclear after the team appointed former New Zealand coach Mike Hesson on a two-year contract earlier this week, replacing Australian Brad Hodge. "All good things must come to an end and

Sydney, Nov 3: Sprint king Usain Bolt's attempt to become a professional footballer with Australia's Central Coast Mariners collapsed as his trial period was terminated after contract talks failed. The eight-time Olympic champion had been trying out with the A-League side for an indefinite period since arriving in August, hoping to fulfil a childhood dream to become a soccer player. The 32-year

Thiruvananthapuram, Nov 2: A ruthless India completed a nine-wicket demolition of the West Indies in the fifth and final ODI here Thursday for their sixth successive series win at home. Left-arm spinner Ravindra Jadeja took four wickets to help India bundle out the West Indies for 104 in just 31.5 overs. Pacers Khaleel Ahmed and Jasprit Bumrah chipped in with two wickets each. The home team took

Thirvananthapuram, Nov 2: India captain Virat Kohli on Thursday reiterated that Mahendra Singh Dhoni remains an integral part of the ODI team and the veteran wicket-keeper batsman decided not to play the upcoming T20s only to make way for the much younger Rishabh Pant. “I think the selectors have already addressed this if I’m not wrong. And he’s been spoken to, firstly... So, I don’t see any