Sports

Pentala Harikrishna, Arjun Erigaisi, R Praggnanandhaa, and Vidit Gujrathi (FIDE Photo) NEW DELHI: Chess-wise, Wednesday was a day of celebration. Edging toward its final month, the year produced its second 19-year-old, and youngest-ever, World Cup winner. The first, of course, was India’s own Divya Deshmukh, who brought home the women’s title earlier this year. The…

File Pic: Ravichandran Ashwin and Gautam Gambhir NEW DELHI: Former India off-spinner R Ashwin has come out strongly in defence of head coach Gautam Gambhir after India’s 0-2 home Test series defeat to South Africa, warning against what he called a growing urge to “find someone to blame” after big losses. India were comprehensively beaten…

Sunil Gavaskar and Gautam Gambhir NEW DELHI: India’s 2-0 Test series capitulation to South Africa has triggered a wave of frustration among fans, much of it directed at head coach Gautam Gambhir. With the team clearly in transition and struggling for consistency, Gambhir’s methods, credentials and lack of red-ball coaching experience have all come under…

Rishabh Pant endured a difficult series both as captain and player, returning scores of 27, 2, 7, and 13. (BCCI Photo) NEW DELHI: India’s Test team hit a new low after suffering their biggest defeat and a second home whitewash within a year, falling 0-2 to South Africa on Wednesday. The series was led by…

Gujarat Giants secured two major signings at the Women’s Premier League 2025 auction. They acquired New Zealand’s Sophie Devine for Rs 2 crore and Indian pacer Renuka Singh Thakur for Rs 60 lakh.Sophie Devine, who took a mental health break after New Zealand’s T20 World Cup victory and missed the previous WPL season, drew attention…

Sri Lanka’s Dushmantha Chameera (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri) Sri Lanka secured their place in the T20 tri-series final with a six-run victory over Pakistan, thanks to Dushmantha Chameera’s impressive bowling figures of 4-20.Pakistan, despite already qualifying for Saturday’s final with three consecutive wins, fell short at 178-7, with captain Salman Ali Agha scoring an unbeaten 63.Sri…

Deepti Sharma attracted intense bidding before UP Warriorz used their Right to Match card to retain her for a massive Rs 3.20 crore, making her one of the most expensive players of the day. (Image credit: WPL) NEW DELHI: UP Warriorz made some of the most decisive and headline-worthy moves at the WPL 2026 mega…

Deepti Sharma, Alyssa Healy. (File photo) NEW DELHI: The WPL mega auction started in Delhi on Thursday, with all five teams working to assemble their squads for the 2026 season.The auction began with the marquee players. The first surprise came when Australia captain Alyssa Healy went unsold, while the other seven marquee players were picked….

The Women’s Premier League (WPL) auction in New Delhi on Thursday opened up with a crackle and quickly turned into a blaze as Asha Sobhana became the first Malayali cricketer to breach the Rs 1-crore mark. In a pulsating, seesawing bidding war, the UP Warriorz snapped up the 34-year-old leg-spinner from Thiruvananthapuram for a staggering…

Alyssa Healy (Photo/Getty Images) NEW DELHI: The 2026 Women’s Premier League (WPL) mega-auction began on Thursday with 276 players listed to go under the hammer. The event opened with a surprise when Australian wicketkeeper-batter Alyssa Healy went unsold. She was the first player in the auction, with a base price of Rs 50 lakh, but…