Sports

Melbourne, Sep 14 (IANS) Australia trio of left-arm pacer Mitchell Starc, all-rounders Mitchell Marsh and Marcus Stoinis are set to miss the upcoming T20I series against India due to injuries.

Opener David Warner had already been rested from the trip and now, Starc (knee), Marsh (ankle) and Stoinis (side strain) have been ruled out of the short tour of India.

"Selectors felt with three games in six days across three cities -- including travel to India and internally -- Marsh, Stoinis and Starc are best served remaining in Australia to prepare for the ICC Men's T20 World Cup," said a statement from Cricket Australia (CA).

Earlier, a report in cricket.com.au said pacer Nathan Ellis, all-rounders Daniel Sams, and Sean Abbott will be the replacements for the injured trio on their trip to India, with matches to take place on September 20, 23 and 25 in Mohali, Nagpur and Hyderabad respectively.

The last time Australia played a T20I series against India, it was in 2019, where Australia won two-match series 2-0.

Marsh and Stoinis were injured during Australia's ODI series against Zimbabwe at Townsville and against New Zealand at Cairns. But Starc, their pace spearhead, is a late exclusion from the tour to India after a scan on his knee in Sydney on Wednesday.

The trios absence means that Australia will have some changes to their desired playing eleven on tour of India.

"The absence of Stoinis all-but guarantees Tim David will make his Australian debut on the tour as a middle-order finisher, and gives him the chance to make it difficult for Stoinis to force his way back into the side."

"Marsh's absence could see Steve Smith move back up to No.3 with allrounder Cameron Green coming into the side, while Josh Inglis is likely to partner Aaron Finch at the top of the order with Warner rested from the tour for family time," added the report.

After playing three T20Is against India, Australia will play home T20I series against the West Indies and England in the lead-up to their Men's T20 World Cup title defence at home.

The Aaron Finch-led side will fly to India early on Thursday to acclimatise to the conditions and kickstart training ahead of first T20I at Mohali on September 20.

Australia will have a warm-up match against India at The Gabba, Brisbane before starting their Men's T20 World Cup campaign at home against New Zealand on October 22 in Sydney.

Australia squad: Sean Abbott, Ashton Agar, Pat Cummins (vice-captain), Tim David, Nathan Ellis, Aaron Finch (captain), Cameron Green, Josh Hazlewood, Josh Inglis, Glenn Maxwell, Kane Richardson, Daniel Sams, Steve Smith, Matthew Wade, Adam Zampa.


--IANS

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Mumbai, Sep 14 (IANS) Five-time IPL champions Mumbai Indians (MI) on Wednesday announced that Mahela Jayawardene and Zaheer Khan are being elevated to new roles as part of the franchise's central team for its growing global cricket footprint.

Jayawardene, the former Sri Lanka skipper who became the head coach of the franchise since 2017 and under whom MI won three IPL titles, has now been appointed as the Global Head of Performance. Zaheer, ex-India left-arm pacer, who joined the side as Director of Cricket Operations in 2018, has been appointed as Global Head of Cricket Development.

The move comes at a time when the Reliance Industries, owners of Mumbai Indians, recently acquired franchises in UAE's ILT20 and South Africa's SA20 leagues. While the UAE franchise is named MI Emirates, the South Africa franchise is called MI Cape Town. Both leagues are scheduled to begin in January next year.

In his new role, Jayawardene will provide senior leadership of the group's cricket operations worldwide, including overall strategic planning, the creation of an integrated global high-performance eco-system, as well as responsibility for each team's coaching and support structures, working closely with the team head coaches to ensure synergies, a consistent brand of cricket, and implementation of best practices set by MI.

"It is an absolute honour for me to lead MI's global cricket operations. Mrs. Ambani and Akash's leadership and guidance have made MI the most valued global cricket franchise and I am very happy to see MI grow globally. I look forward to this new responsibility to build a strong cohesive global brand of cricket," said Jayawardene in an official statement.

Zaheer's new role will see him be responsible for player development, building on MI's robust programme around talent identification and grooming and adopting the same across geographies, which has been core philosophy and has contributed to MI's success in IPL. Each geography comes with its unique set of challenges and Zaheer's elevated role will play an important role helping all three franchises across the globe.

"I am humbled to take on this new role and thank Mrs. Nita Ambani and Akash for their faith in me. MI has been home for me as a player and as a coaching team member, and now as we embark on a new journey, I look ahead to working closely with all the stakeholders in the global network to unearth new potential that can join the family," added Zaheer.

"I'm happy to have Mahela and Zak as part of our global core team. Both have been an integral part of the MI family and embody the spirit of the cricket MI stands for. I'm confident that they would be able to ensure the same flows through all our teams globally and make a difference in the cricketing ecosystems across the globe," said Akash M. Ambani, Chairman, Reliance Jio Infocomm.

Mumbai are the only team apart from four-time IPL winners Chennai Super Kings to successfully defend their title, which they did in 2020. After missing the playoffs in 2021, the side had a disappointing last place finish in the 10-team event in IPL 2022, winning just four out of 14 matches in the league stage.


--IANS

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Dubai, Sep 14 (IANS) Even as the buzz builds in India around the unveiling of the kit for the 'Men in Blue' for the ICC T20 World Cup in Australia in October-November, Australia revealed Aaron Finch's men will wear an Indigenous-themed kit for the first time as they attempt to defend their crown on home soil.

While England have opted for a predominantly red kit, Aboriginal artwork will flow on the Australian jerseys, which have black sleeves and a green and gold gradient on the trunk of the playing top, as they seek to defend the T20 World Cup on home soil a year after lifting the trophy in the United Arab Emirates defeating trans-Tasman rivals New Zealand.

"The long-sleeved version will see the gold and green artwork extended onto the sleeves of the top, while the pants will be black and a cap will feature the colours of both the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander flags on the brim. The kit was designed by Aunty Fiona Clarke and Courtney Hagen, in collaboration with Asics, with the pair having previously worked together on other Indigenous designs worn by Australia," said a report in cricket.com.au on Wedneday.

As in previous designs, the Walkabout Wickets artwork that has become a prominent motif is again central on the front of the shirt, said the report.

"Walkabout Wickets was painted by Clarke, a Kirrae Whurrong woman who is the great great grand-daughter of James 'Mosquito' Couzens, who played in the Aboriginal XI in a landmark match at the MCG in 1866, and also toured England in 1868, the first sporting team from Australia to play abroad," added the report.

The report added that Clarke created the artwork ahead of the 2016 Boxing Day Test to commemorate the 150th anniversary of the 1866 match, and it has been included on the collar of the Test shirt ever since.

The jersey pays tribute to the past, present and emerging First Nations cricketers, and connection is an important theme for the kit.

"The overall design is to do with the process of connecting with yourself as an individual, as a team, in the community and whatever is surrounded by you ... with the river, the land, whatever you see," said Clarke.

Hagen, a Butchulla and Gubbi Gubbi woman, said the design incorporated wickets to represent games played, and stars to signify ancestors.

"In the middle we've been able to incorporate the colours of the both of First Nations flags in Australia. So you've got the red, black and yellow, which is represents Aboriginal flag and the blue, white and green which represents the Torres Strait Islander flag."

Four Indigenous men and two Indigenous women have so far donned Australia colours in international cricket since the first Test in 1877.

The countries which are yet to unveil their jerseys include, India, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Ireland, Namibia, Netherlands, New Zealand, Pakistan, Scotland, South Africa, Sri Lanka, United Arab Emirates, West Indies and Zimbabwe.


ICC T20 World Cup (First round)

Group A: Sri Lanka, Namibia, UAE, Netherlands.

Group B: West Indies, Scotland, Ireland, Zimbabwe.


Super 12 stage

Group 1: Australia, Afghanistan, England, New Zealand, A1, B2

Group 2: Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, South Africa, B1, A2

--IANS

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Chennai, Sep 13 (IANS) India's top women's singles player Ankita Raina crashed out of the WTA Chennai Open tennis tournament, losing to fourth-seed Tatjana Maria of Germany in the women's singles first round at the SDAT Stadium on Tuesday.

Maria, playing on the hard courts and hot and humid conditions of Chennai for the WTA 250 tennis tournament, got off to a superb start, breaking Ankita in the first game itself, and went on to win in straight sets, 0-6, 1-6 in one hour and 16 minutes.

Maria Tatjana, a semifinalist at Wimbledon 2022, broke Ankita in the first game and the German ranked 84th in the World, ran away with the first set, not allowing her Indian opponent to settle down.

Despite scoring more winners in the first set, Ankita, who is ranked 325th, could not convert her breakpoints and hit nine unforced errors compared to two from Tatjana Maria.

The trend continued in the second set as Ankita failed to convert some match points in the first game. The fifth game of the second set was the first that she won but that remained the only game she won as Maria dominated the one-sided match.

Top seed Alison Riske-Amritraj was stunned by Anastasia Gasanova in straight games, 6-2, 6-3 in a Round of 32 match while third-seed Magda Linette 6-4, 6-0.

Second seed Varvara Gracheva defeated Mariia Tkacheva 6-3, 6-2.

--IANS

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Ahmedabad, Sep 13 (IANS) Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel set an ambitious target for his state's teams and players in the 36th National Games, starting here on September 29, doubling the cash bonanza for medal winners.

At a mega ceremony to launch the #GoForGold programme on Tuesday, the Chief Minister announced a cash bonanza for medal winners while interacting with the state's contingent, including players, coaches and support staff.

Speaking on the occasion, the Chief Minister asked the state contingent to 'aim for GOLD'!

"Once you believe that you can achieve the impossible, you are already halfway there. If you can believe, no one can stop you from achieving greatness," he said.

"The state government is doubling the cash awards for winning medals as a gesture of encouragement and appreciation," he added.

Gujarat's Sports Minister Harsh Sanghavi reminded the gathering that Team Gujarat enjoyed the Home Advantage as the host state and urged his players to take full advantage of it.

"You all have started playing sport on this very land and now you have an opportunity to bring glory. It is my heartfelt desire that all of you excel in your sport," he declared.

Former All-England Open winner and national badminton coach Pullela Gopichand and world champion shooter Anjali Bhagwat were the chief guests at the function. They exhorted the players to think big and let the results take care of themselves.

"I congratulate the Gujarat government for taking the initiative to host the National Games. If we can organise an event with 20,000 athletes so grandly, I am confident that we can host the Olympics too which assembles only 11,000 athletes," Gopichand declared.

"I am delighted to be here, especially as my first-ever shooting match was here in Ahmedabad when I came as an NCC girl. I went on to win a medal and my journey in the sport began," Anjali Bhagwat said.

"Mental strength and mindset are the two keys to success," she said. "You need to believe that you can be a champ. Give 100 percent but visualise yourself winning the medal, standing on the podium. If your mind doesn't see that, you can't get there," she added.

The state coaches, while advising the selected players via a video presentation, urged their wards to "play fair yet fierce" and beat the competition.

The Honourable Chief Minister also unveiled the kit for the National Games, the playing gear that the team will wear during competitions and training. He also briefed on the ongoing preparations for the National Games, training camps etc.

Neary 2,000 persons were present at the function, including players representing Gujarat in the National Games along with their coaches, assistant coaches, team managers, etc, top sports officials and bureaucrats from the state, representatives of sports academies, media, etc.

--IANS

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Beijing, Sep 13 (IANS) World Table Tennis (WTT) on Tuesday announced plans for the 2023 edition of the WTT Singapore Smash, with a wider range of participants to compete in the event next March.

China's Fan Zhendong and Chen Meng were crowned the first Grand Smash champions in Singapore in March.

According to the WTT, the inaugural event was broadcast in 196 countries and regions, reaching a cumulative audience of more than 160 million.

The WTT confirmed that the mixed doubles draw will increase from 16 pairs to 24 pairs for the 2023 event, and the number of seeds in the singles competitions will increase from 8 to 16 players, reports Xinhua.

The Singapore Smash 2023 will feature 64-player men's and women's singles draws, and 24-pair doubles and mixed competitions.

The main draw of the Singapore Smash 2023 will take place between March 11 and 19, and the singles qualifying competitions will be held from March 7 to 9.

--IANS

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Kanpur, Sep 13 (IANS) Having won their opening encounters, India Legends, will take on West Indies Legends in match number six of the Road Safety World Series 2022 at Green Park Stadium here on Wednesday.

West Indies Legends -- who registered a comprehensive 9-wicket win over Bangladesh in their season opener -- will be bolstered with the arrival of their skipper Brian Lara. Lara -- who missed the opening game due to personal reasons -- arrived in Kanpur on Monday.

The Sachin Tendulkar-led India Legends side put up a clinical performance against South Africa Legends last on Saturday to secure a mammoth 61-run win in front of a packed stadium. The defending champions ticked off all the checkboxes in the previous game as their batting, bowling and fielding looked up to the mark.

Although the opening pair of Tendulkar and Naman Ojha failed to give India Legends a sublime start in the powerplay and were dismissed early against South Africa Legends. Fans would be hoping for a good knock from the master blaster and from local lad Suresh Raina -- who played a brilliant cameo the other evening.

Stuart Binny and Yusuf Pathan will look to give West Indian bowlers a run for their money in the death overs with their explosive hitting skills.

India's bowling department looks balanced as it has a decent pace attack in Irfan Pathan, Manpreet Gony, and Munaf Patel while the spin department looks equally potent due to the presence of Pragyan Ojha and Rahul Sharma.

West Indies Legends -- who are coming on the back of a big win over Bangladesh -- would also replicate their performance from the opening game. Acting skipper Dwyane Smith -- who slammed a match-winning fifty -- along with pacers Krishmar Santokie and Darren Powell would be aiming for a strong show against the hosts. Their spinners Dave Mohammed, Devendra Bishoo, and Suleiman Benn are equally dangerous in this format and it won't be easy for the Indians to go after them.

In the first edition, India Legends edged West Indies Legends by 12 runs. Out of 25 T20Is between these two teams, India have won 17 whereas West Indies have come out victorious on 7 occasions. 1 game ended without a result.

--IANS

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New Delhi, Sep 13 (IANS) The India U-17 boys football team is all focused on putting the mistakes behind them when they face Nepal in the SAFF U-17 Championship final at the Racecourse International Stadium in Colombo on Wednesday.

The Indian camp sounded confident on the eve of the match. "We started the tournament well. But it was a nervy start nonetheless. This is the first tournament that the boys are playing for the country, and that can always give you a few jitters," said head coach Bibiano Fernandes.

"The result against Nepal was a wake-up call for us. The boys reacted extremely well after the setback. We have identified and worked on our weaknesses. I need to credit the boys for taking up this challenge," he added.

The Indian team had started its campaign with a victory against Bhutan but suffered a 1-3 loss at the hands of Nepal in their second group stage game before turning their fortunes around against Bangladesh with a 2-1 victory in the semifinal.

While the coach's perspective was about eliminating the mistakes and the jitters, the players are all looking forward to redeeming themselves for the last defeat against Nepal.

"We were terribly upset after the loss to Nepal. We wanted a rematch, and it is our chance to prove ourselves in the final," said captain Vanlalpeka Guite. "We are completel" focused."

One major change for the boys, the coach noted, has been the change in the mindset. "There is always a lot to learn from any defeat, and I need to appreciate the mindset of the boys. We all know how good Nepal are, and you can see how much the boys are focusing on the job ahead," said Bibiano.

Playing in Sri Lanka, the Indian team has mostly to deal with loud cheers for the rival team. "The opposition supporters do not affect us. We need to focus on ourselves. We have faith in our abilities. Having the fans cheering for the opposition is an extra motivation," Bibiano said.

--IANS

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Hyderabad, Sep 13 (IANS) A new National Cricket Board -- Indian Schools Board for Cricket (ISBC) -- has been launched by former captain and Padmashree Dilip Vengsarkar here on Monday.

ISBC is a non-profit organisation that will search, nurture and groom young cricketing talent across India, especially in rural areas (and less privileged) to give a new future and opportunity to the hidden and promising rural cricket talent.

Speaking on the occasion, Sunil Babu Kolanapaka, Founder and CEO of the Board said, "ISBC has entered into grooming school cricketers. TSPL was a huge success with 5120 school cricketers, 31 districts of Telangana state participating in the tournament and 550 matches in which the villagers saw some extraordinary cricketing talent and the 'Indian Schools Board Cricket' has started today to develop this talent."

Dilip Vengsarkar thanked the people of the board for this occasion and said, "It is a good initiative. This will give a good opportunity and platform to the children of our young generation. Good and talented people will get the right direction, especially those from rural areas. Students with hidden talents will get a golden opportunity."

Ankesh Rathore, president, said, "India needed an organised structure to produce school cricketers, which the ISBC would accomplish."

Whereas, Padam Raj Parakh, secretary, said, "We are delighted to have a school group consisting of 19 countries, under which we plan to organize a "School World Cup" by the end of 2023.

ISBC will start cricket activities for 2023 from the month of July-August. The schedule and participation will be announced after December 2022. ISTL will have academic scholarships, introduce specialist cricket training at ICC level academies in India and abroad.

The members who have been unanimously elected to ISBC for a period of three years are president Ankesh Rathore (Rajasthan), vice-presidents Sandhya Agarwal (Madhya Pradesh), Y Sudarsana Babu (Andhra Pradesh), Sangram Lonkar (Maharashtra), secretary Padam Raj Parakh (Rajasthan), joint secretary Mohammad Yousuf (Tamil Nadu), Dr S Senthil Kumar (Tamil Nadu), treasurer D Srinivas Reddy (Andhra Pradesh), executive committee Jayesh Gandhi (Maharashtra), Varsha Sharma (Madhya Pradesh), T Srinivas Reddy (Andhra Pradesh), Ch Vijay Kumar (Andhra Pradesh), Amit Bokadia (Rajasthan), Abhishek Avala (Telangana), founder-CEO Sunil Babu Kolanpaka (Telangana), chief patron Dr K Laxman MP, patron Avinash Gehlot MLA (Rajasthan).

--IANS
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Kolkata, Sep 12 (IANS) Indian Super League (ISL) winner Hyderabad FC put in a strong performance against I-League side Rajasthan United to claim a 3-1 win in the Durand Cup 2022 quarterfinals here at the Kishore Bharati Stadium in Kolkata on Monday.

Bartholomew Ogbeche (6'), Akash Mishra (45') and Javi Siverio (68') found the back of the net for Manolo Marquez's team while Martin Chaves (29' pen) scored at the other end from a spot-kick in an entertaining 3-1 win for HFC.

This win knocks Rajasthan United out of the competition while Hyderabad are set to face Bengaluru FC in the second Semifinal in a few days.

Under the lights, even as it was pouring down, Bart Ogbeche took just six minutes to get himself on the scoresheet as he thumped in a header from the edge of the box to convert a Borja Herrera cross and take Hyderabad into an early lead.

It was Hyderabad who then piled the pressure on for most of the game but against the run of play, Rajasthan were offered a way back when Akash Mishra handed an awkward high ball and the referee pointed to the spot.

Laxmikant Kattimani was beaten but HFC did not take long to restore their lead. Akash Mishra popped up with a stunning goal, as he drove a long-range effort from the left into the far corner to bring it back to 2-1 before the break.

Javi Siverio effectively decided the tie after he converted from a Halicharan Narzary cross just after the hour mark. It was Narzary's first touch after coming on as a sub while Siverio bagged what was his first goal of the current Durand Cup campaign.

The likes of Joel Chianese, Joao Victor, Sweden Fernandes, Nikhil Poojary and Lalchungnunga Chhangte all came close on a few occasions while Martin Chaves also hit the bar at the other end in an eventful second half.

But it was the determination of Odei Onaindia and Nim Dorjee Tamang, that rarely allowed the I-League side a clear shot at Kattimani's goal for most of the game.

This win takes Hyderabad FC to their first ever Semifinal in the Durand Cup as they take on fellow ISL side Bengaluru FC at the Salt Lake Stadium in Kolkata on September 15.

--IANS

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