Los Angeles: Denver center Nikola Jokic matched his career-high with 47 points as the Nuggets cooled off the hottest team in the NBA on Sunday with a 128-117 victory over the Utah Jazz.
Jokic erupted for 33 points in the first half – 22 in the first quarter – and added 12 rebounds for his 20th double-double to start the season.
The Nuggets brought an emphatic end to Utah's 11-game winning streak, the longest in the league this season.
Their victory, coupled with the Los Angeles Clippers' 129-115 victory over the Knicks in New York, saw the Clippers move ahead of the Jazz atop the Western Conference with a league-leading record of 16-5.
"At this moment they are the best team in the NBA, they're playing amazing, they had 11 wins in a row, they are shooting the ball really well," Jokic said. "This was a really nice win for us."
The Nuggets led by as many as 28 points, using a first-half three-point barrage to bury the Jazz.
Denver were a perfect eight-for-eight from three-point range in the first quarter and made 15 of their total 18 from beyond the arc in the first half.
In the third quarter, though, the Jazz twice reduced the 28-point deficit to single figures.
Denver's JaMychal Green scored all of his nine points in the fourth quarter, and fellow reserve Facundo Campazzo added six of his 11 in the final frame as the Nuggets pulled away again.
Bojan Bogdanovic paced the Jazz with 29 points. Donovan Mitchell added 13, and Rudy Gobert, Royce O'Neale and Mike Conley added 12 apiece.
But seven players in double figures and 20 three-pointers weren't enough to keep the Jazz from losing for the first time since 6 January.
At Madison Square Garden, Kawhi Leonard scored 28 points to lead six Clippers in double figures against the Knicks.
The imposing New York defense, allowing the fewest points per game in the league, couldn't find an answer as the Clippers pulled away in the third quarter, stretching a one-point halftime lead to double digits.
Leonard and Reggie Jackson scored 10 points apiece in the third quarter, when the Clippers connected on 13 of 19 shots from the field.
The Knicks, led by Julius Randle's 27 points, cut the deficit to two points with 7:44 left to play but a 9-0 scoring run put the Clippers back in charge.
Wild Wizards win
Bradley Beal and Russell Westbrook keyed a late rally by the Washington Wizards in a nail-biting 149-146 victory over the Brooklyn Nets.
The contest featuring the league's top two scorers, Beal and Nets star Kevin Durant, promised fireworks – and the frantic finish didn't disappoint.
Beal's pull-up three-pointer with 8.1 seconds left pulled the Wizards within two at 146-144.
Teammate Garrison Matthews then came up with a steal and got the ball to Westbrook, whose three-pointer less than four seconds after Beal's put the Wizards up 147-146 – their first lead since the second quarter.
Washington got another stop, and Beal made two free throws to seal the win.
"Right now, all that matters is we get a win," Westbrook said of a Wizards team that had lost four straight since having six games postponed because Covid-19 measures left them with too few available players.
Westbrook finished with 41 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists. Beal added 37 points with five rebounds and four assists.
Durant had 37 points and seven rebounds for a Nets team that was without James Harden – who was nursing a thigh contusion.
In Indianapolis, Tobias Harris scored 10 of his 27 points in the fourth quarter, and Philadelphia teammate Furkan Korkmaz drained a pull-up jump shot that put the 76ers ahead with 2:30 remaining on the way to a 119-110 come-from-behind win over the Indiana pacers.
Eastern Conference leaders Philadelphia trailed by 16 with less than 10 minutes remaining, but turned the tables to notch a sixth win in seven games despite the absence of star center Joel Embiid, who was sidelined with back trouble.
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ब्यूनस आयर्सभारतीय टीम ने बेहतर प्रदर्शन करते हुए अर्जेंटीना दौरे का (India tour of Argentina) अंत मेजबान के खिलाफ 1-1 से ड्रॉ के साथ किया। दुनिया की दूसरे नंबर की टीम के खिलाफ कप्तान रानी ने 35वें मिनट में गोल दागा जबकि मेजबान के लिए एमिलिया फोरचेरियो ने पेनल्टी स्ट्रोक पर गोल किया। यह भारतीय टीम का चौथा मैच था जबकि तीसरा मैच लगातार बारिश के कारण रद्द कर दिया गया था। इससे पहले भारत ने अर्जेंटीना की जूनियर टीम से 2-2 और 1-1 से ड्रॉ खेला जबकि अर्जेंटीना की बी टीम से 1-2, 2-3 से हार गई। अर्जेंटीना की सीनियर टीम के खिलाफ भारत पहले दो मैच 2-3, 0-2 से हार गई थी। पढ़ें, आखिरी मैच में भारतीय टीम जीत के लिए कमर कसकर उतरी थी लेकिन अनुभवी मेजबान टीम ने उसके मंसूबों पर पानी फेर दिया। मेजबान ने पहले क्वार्टर से ही हमले बोलने शुरू कर दिये जिससे भारतीय डिफेंस पर दबाव बन गया। अर्जेंटीना ने पहले क्वॉर्टर के तीन मिनट के भीतर दो पेनल्टी कॉर्नर बनाए। भारतीय गोलकीपर सविता ने हालांकि दोनों पर गोल नहीं होने दिए। भारत को 11वें मिनट में मिला पेनल्टी कॉर्नर बेकार गया। दूसरे क्वॉर्टर में तीन मिनट बाद रानी को एक और मौका मिला जब अनुभवी वंदना कटारिया ने उनकी मदद की लेकिन भारतीय कप्तान अर्जेंटीना के डिफेंस को नहीं भेद सकी। अर्जेंटीना ने 23वें और 24वें मिनट में पेनल्टी कॉर्नर बनाए लेकिन सविता ने गोल नहीं होने दिए। तीसरे क्वॉर्टर में एक बार फिर वंदना की मदद से रानी ने गोल किया। भारत को 39वें और 50वें मिनट में बढ़त दोगुनी करने का मौका मिला लेकिन दोनों मौके गंवा दिए। दूसरी ओर अर्जेंटीना लगातार हमले बोलती रही और 55वें मिनट में उसे पेनल्टी स्ट्रोक मिल गया। फोरचेरियो ने इस पर बराबरी का गोल दागा। भारत ने 56वें और 59वें मिनट में फिर पेनल्टी कॉर्नर गंवाए लेकिन उन पर गोल नहीं हो सका। भारत के मुख्य कोच शोर्ड मारिन ने कहा, ‘एक गोल से बढ़त लेने के बाद हमें संयम से खेलना चाहिए था। हमें अपने खेल पर और मेहनत करनी पड़ेगी।’
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नई दिल्ली टीम इंडिया के स्टार पेसर का एक वीडियो सोशल मीडिया पर काफी वायरल हुआ जिसमें वह दिग्गज स्पिनर () के गेंदबाजी ऐक्शन की नकल करते नजर आ रहे थे। अब कुंबले ने इस पर अपना रिएक्शन दिया है। भारतीय टीम ऑस्ट्रेलिया के खिलाफ सीरीज जीतने के बाद अब अपनी मेजबानी में इंग्लैंड से 4 मैचों की टेस्ट सीरीज खेलेगी, जिसका आगाज 5 फरवरी से चेन्नै में होना है। बुमराह पर इस सीरीज में खास नजरें रहेंगी। पढ़ें, अपनी तेज गेंदबाजी के दम पर कई अहम मौकों पर जीत दिलाने वाले बुमराह () प्रैक्टिस सेशन के दौरान कुंबले के बोलिंग ऐक्शन में गेंदबाजी करते नजर आए थे। इसका वीडियो क्लिप बीसीसीआई ने सोशल मीडिया पर शेयर किया। वहीं, इंस्टाग्राम पर इसे इंडिया क्रिकेट टीम के आधिकारिक हैंडल से शेयर किया गया। टीम इंडिया के पूर्व हेड कोच अनिल कुंबले ने बुमराह के गेंदबाजी ऐक्शन की नकल करने की तारीफ की और इसे काफी करीब बताया। साथ ही उन्होंने आगामी सीरीज के लिए इस गेंदबाज को शुभकामनाएं दीं। कुंबले ने लिखा, 'वेल डन बूम। आप इसके बेहद करीब थे। अगली पीढ़ी के युवा तेज गेंदबाजों के लिए आप एक प्रेरणा हैं जो आपके स्टाइल की नकल कर रहे हैं। आगामी सीरीज के लिए शुभकामनाएं।' भारत की तरफ से वनडे और टेस्ट क्रिकेट में सर्वाधिक विकेट लेने वाले कुंबले ने साल 2008 में अंतरराष्ट्रीय क्रिकेट को अलविदा कह दिया था। उनके नाम टेस्ट में 619 विकेट दर्ज हैं।
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Melbourne: Japanese spearhead Kei Nishikori admitted on Monday he was "very sore" as he resumes training after two weeks in hard lockdown, as their ATP Cup team frets on doubles specialist Ben McLachlan who is stuck in New Zealand.
Former top-five star Nishikori was among 72 players forced to stay in their rooms 24 hours a day after COVID-19 cases were detected on charter flights bringing them to Melbourne for the Australian Open.
Others were permitted five-hour daily blocks outside to train.
"It is obviously not easy. My body is reacting very tough," said Nishikori, who has slipped to 41 in the world after a series of injuries.
"Very sore everything. But I have still two more days, so I should be okay."
Japan open their ATP Cup campaign on Wednesday against Russia, with Nishikori facing world number four Daniil Medvedev and Yoshihito Nishioka up against eighth-ranked Andrey Rublev.
McLachlan, who has a New Zealand father and Japanese mother, is due to play doubles but is yet to arrive in Australia.
His plans were thrown into disarray when Australia halted their quarantine-free travel for New Zealanders last month after their first case of COVID-19 community transmission in more than two months.
The suspension has now been lifted and McLachlan is hoping to be on a flight on Tuesday.
"For a while, Ben was telling us he had few options, that they were going to reschedule his route, itinerary," Japan team captain Max Mirnyi said.
"Only yesterday he confirmed they put him on a flight coming in tomorrow during the day."
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Buenos Aires: The Indian women's hockey team put up a spirited performance to hold World No 2 Argentina to a 1-1 draw and end their tour of the country on a high.
Skipper Rani Rampal struck for India in the 35th minute while Emilia Forcherio scored for the home team through a penalty stroke on Sunday.
This was India's fourth scheduled match against the side after the third match to be played on Saturday was abandoned due to incessant rains.
Earlier in the tour, India had drawn 2-2, 1-1 against the Argentina junior team and lost 1-2, 2-3 to Argentina 'B' team.
Against the Argentina senior side, India lost 2-3 and 0-2 in the first and second matches respectively.
The Indians played with an intent to secure the elusive win against Argentina in their last match of the tour.
But the experienced home team continued to showcase a dominant performance, getting off the blocks in the first quarter with a well-structured attack.
FT: 🇮🇳 1 - 1 🇦🇷
It has been rumbling in Buenos Aires but our Eves managed to steal the thunder with their impressive game tonight! 💪
The early pressure on India's defence line worked for Argentina as they earned two penalty corners within three minutes of the first quarter.
But India goalkeeper Savita was upto the mark and made brilliant saves to deny the hosts.
India found a good opportunity to score in the 11th minute when they were awarded a penalty corner, but couldn't execute it.
Three minutes into the second quarter, Rani found yet another opportunity to score when experienced forward Vandana Katariya assisted her but a valiant Argentine defence held strong, covering every inch in the striking circle.
In the following minutes, Argentina won two penalty corners in the 23rd and 24th minutes but Savita stood like a rock in front of the goal.
Skipper Rani finally found the right opportunity to score when India made an aggressive start to the third quarter.
It was Vandana again who found Rani poised in front of the goal and fed her the ball from the right flank.
Rani made no mistake in receiving the pass and swiftly struck the ball past the Argentine goalkeeper to earn India a 1-0 lead in the 35th minute.
India had two good opportunities to extend the lead in the 39th and 50th minutes of the game, but wasted both the opportunities.
Argentina, on the other hand, pushed for goals and a body foul while defending the penalty corner in the 55th minute, saw India concede a penalty stroke.
From the resultant set piece, Forcherio was on target to draw level.
Under pressure, India conceded two more penalty corners in the 56th and 59th minutes but Argentina could not utilise the opportunities.
"After the 1-0 lead, we had to stay calm and continue to pursue our attack. We had to play more smartly but that's something we can work on," said India's chief coach Sjoerd Marijne after the match.
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Going into the title round of the BWF World Tour Finals, two rejuvenated, back-from-surgery players, Spain’s Carolina Marin and Denmark’s Viktor Axelsen, had managed to build an aura of invincibility around themselves over the course of three tournaments played at the Impact Arena, Bangkok, during the immediately preceding three weeks.
By the end of the two singles finals, both of which went the full distance, the lofty aspirations of both these former world champions lay in ruins. While an unusually timid Axelsen ended up beating himself, as it were, it required a very special player, and a total revamp of match strategy, to rein in the feisty left-handed Spaniard, and prevent her from winning her third title on as many Sundays in January.
Long-reigning World No.1, Tai Tzu Ying of Chinese Taipei, took the bull by the horns, matched Marin’s scorching pace, pinned her repeatedly on her slightly vulnerable backhand baseline, and exhibited enormous mental strength in coming back from a 17-19 deficit in the decider of their memorable 67-minute battle-royal, to pip the Spanish southpaw at the tape, by a 14-21, 21-8, 21-19 scoreline.
“Finally, I won,” said the 26 year old Taiwanese ace, relief clear on her face after winning her third 'season-ending' title. “This victory is significant because I had to really maintain focus. Marin forces a lot of pressure as she is fast. If I lose a bit of focus, the gap becomes big and very hard to chase down. I needed to take care of that because every point matters against her.”
Marin was gracious in defeat: “Tzu Ying could catch me on my backhand side, I knew about that; and I was ready for some of the shuttles, but not for others. She did that all the time today, she put more pressure on my backhand today than previously. And she played better than me at the end of the match. It was a really good three weeks for me. I’d have been happier if I had won, but two titles and a final is not bad!”
It was commendable that Marin, having undergone knee reconstruction following a ligament tear while playing the Indonesia Open final against India’s Saina Nehwal in the early weeks of 2019, had worked hard to build up the dazzling speed that had netted her three world Championship titles (in 2014, 2015 and 2018) and the 2016 Rio Olympics gold medal.
Tai’s fitness and ability to last the distance were never in doubt, and she played some absolutely breathtaking strokes to get out of trouble during testing rallies. She was faster on her feet and much more aggressive than she had been while being beaten in straight games by Marin in the two Thailand Open finals. She did not abandon her high-risk, high-returns style that make her the world’s most exciting shuttler, but she kept her concentration at a better level than she had in the two previous finals in Bangkok, and conceded fewer negative points than she had earlier.
There is reason to believe that these two wonderful players will continue to dominate the tournaments that precede the Tokyo Olympics, which are scheduled to take place in July. Tai leads their head-to-head by a narrow 10-8 margin, which is the tightest figure among the Taiwanese player’s career statistics with the entire current crop of women’s singles players – Nozomi Okuhara and Akane Yamaguchi of Japan, Chen Yufei and He Bingjiao of China, An Se Young of Korea and P V Sindhu of India, to name just half a dozen of the top female shuttlers in the world today.
There were four entities among the five events, at the start of Sunday’s World Tour finals, who were in with a chance of completing a hat-trick of titles. But only two of them managed to bag their third consecutive title in as many weeks – the men’s doubles pair of Lee Yang and Wang Chi-lin of Chinese Taipei, and the mixed doubles combination of Dechapol Puavaranukroh and Sapsiree Taerattanachai of Thailand.
Whereas Marin was baulked at the tape by Tai in the women’s singles final, the 2017 world champion Viktor Axelsen was unexpectedly tamed at 21-16, 5-21, 21-17 in an hour-long encounter by compatriot Anders Antonsen, runner-up to Japan’s Kento Momota at the 2019 World Championships.
The defeat snapped Axelsen’s 29-match winning streak, stretching back to the All England Open in March, and prevented him from winning his fourth straight Super 1000 title. The two finalists had met on five previous occasions, and Axelsen was leading their head-to-head 3-2. However, Antonsen had been laid low by COVID-19 in the first week of December, and was far from at his physical best – which explains his transparent strategy of blatantly letting the second game go, in order to conserve his energies for the decider.
As one of the TV commentators quipped before the start of the match, “Axelsen can only be defeated today by Axelsen himself!” So dominant had the rangy 6’ 4” Dane been, in the two Thailand Open tournaments, and in the lead-up to the title match of the World Tour Finals, that he had dropped a solitary game in 14 previous matches in Bangkok – to the speedy Indonesian, Anthony Sinisuka Ginting, in the semi-final of the first Thailand Open. It was hard to believe that Axelsen had had surgery on his troublesome ankle as recently as September last year.
However, the 23 year old Antonsen, who practises regularly with his slightly taller and older rival during the national camps, was familiar with his rival’s speedy style, and played a tactically shrewd game. As Arthur Ashe had famously done to Jimmy Connors in the 1975 Wimbledon final, Antonsen simply denied his senior countryman the pace that Axelsen relishes.
There were half-smashes down the flanks, along with accurate body smashes; and the net remained firmly under the younger man’s control. He also wisely conserved his energies in the decider, taking frequent rests for towelling down, using the Hawk-eye challenges judiciously to get his breath back, and keeping the rallies short.
“I’m shocked and I’m so, so happy, of course,” an exhausted Antonsen said, after the match. “It’s overwhelming, I didn’t expect to go all the way. It’s amazing to get a title as big as this one. It’s hard to process, and I don’t even know what to say. I’ve had a tough month, things have not been working well for me and I’ve been struggling a lot, so to win here is unreal.”
The older man admitted to being a bundle of nerves in the closing reaches of the encounter. “I’m disappointed,” he said. “I wouldn’t say I’m as satisfied with my game as I have been the other days. There were way too many mistakes and bad decisions. I think mentally I’ve used up a lot of energy. Anders played really well and I want to congratulate him. It wasn’t for me today, but I can still look back at a great three weeks.”
The players now go on a month-long rest and recuperation period, occasioned mainly by the cancellation or postponement of several World Tour tournaments that were originally set for February. The break will also provide time for the countries in Europe, that will be hosting the next leg of the circuit, to get their act together on the Covid-control front.
The first tournament in Europe will be the Swiss Open, a Super 300 event, to be played in Basel from 2 to 7 March. Following closely behind will be another Super 300 competition, the German Open (9 to 14 March) at Muelheim an der Ruhr, and the next Super 1000 championships after the two recently concluded Thailand Opens – the All England Open (17 to 21 March) at Birmingham. A fourth World Tour event takes place in Malaysia in the closing days of the month.
It is expected that the Japanese and Chinese contingents – which stayed away from Bangkok for different reasons, though both related to COVID-19 – will return to the international circuit from the Basel tournament. The tournaments in March will provide the likes of Kidambi Srikanth and Saina Nehwal some late opportunities to collect points towards their fading qualification bids for the Tokyo Olympics.
Even though P V Sindhu and B Sai Praneeth have already qualified for the Olympics, they would be keen to test their combat-readiness for the stern battles in Tokyo by pitting their wits against the best in the world.
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Wolfsburg rose to third in the Bundesliga on Sunday with a 3-0 win over Freiburg, extending its unbeaten run to five games amid a close fight for the Champions League places.
Wolfsburg climbed above Bayer Leverkusen, Borussia Dortmund and Eintracht Frankfurt to move firmly into contention for Champions League qualification. Wolfsburg is 10 points off leader Bayern Munich and three behind Leipzig in second.
United States defender John Brooks lashed the ball in for the opening goal in the 21st minute after Freiburg failed to clear a corner. Wout Weghorst made it 2-0 with his 13th goal in 19 Bundesliga games just before halftime, beating defender Keven Schlotterbeck and straining to prod the ball past goalkeeper Florian Müller.
Freiburg midfielder Baptiste Santamaria had a hat trick of missed chances either side of halftime, sending one header over the bar, another header onto the bar, and hitting a long drive which skimmed the outside of the post.
Soon after, Weghorst could have tightened Wolfsburg's hold on the game but shot against the base of the post from close range. The third goal came eventually when midfielder Yannick Gerhardt knocked in a cross for his first league goal of the season. Freiburg stayed in ninth place.
Earlier, two goals from Marius Wolf lifted Cologne to a 3-1 win over Arminia Bielefeld in a game between two teams trying to avoid relegation. Cologne moved up two places to 14th with its second win of 2021, dropping Bielefeld into 16th and the relegation playoff spot.
Wolf gave Cologne the lead with a goal on the rebound in the 10th minute after Ellyes Shkiri's header was palmed away by the goalkeeper at a corner. He added the second 18 minutes later with a powerful low volley off a misplaced headed clearance.
Elvis Rexhbeçaj extended Cologne's lead in the 63rd, finishing off an incisive team move, before Sergio Córdova reduced the deficit for Bielefeld.
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Melbourne: Tennis great Lleyton Hewitt has tipped showman Nick Kyrgios to make a deep run at this month's Australian Open, despite his fellow Australian not playing for a year.
The charismatic 25-year-old last performed in February at the Acapulco Open before a wrist injury and then the coronavirus pandemic brought his season to a halt.
He opted not to travel for the US or French Opens, but returns this week in the ATP Murray River Open at Melbourne Park ahead of the first Grand Slam of the year on 8 February.
Hewitt, Australia's captain at the ATP Cup this week, was courtside at Rod Laver Arena during a Kyrgios training session and said he looked sharp.
"Nick, I think as a whole him having a bit of a breakaway from the sport where he's positioned, for his body and mind I think is a good thing," Hewitt said of Kyrgios' time away from the sport.
"Because he hasn't played a match for so long, though, it's not going to be easy for him just to come out and switch it on either.
"I think it's perfect for him to hopefully get through a few rounds in one of the ATP tournaments that he's playing this week.
"But from a whole, he looks to be hitting the ball well, clean, he relies on his serve and is serving big at the moment. He's hitting the ball well enough to push deep in the Australian Open for sure."
Despite his immense talent, Kyrgios has yet to go beyond the quarter-finals at Grand Slams and has slipped to 47 in the world.
But he remains hugely popular and said over the weekend he was "mentally completely refreshed".
"I feel like I am playing well and am ready to go," he added.
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India is all set to host England in a four-match Test series, starting with the Chennai Test on 5th February. For Virat Kohli’s men, this will be their first home assignment after the long break due to COVID-19. The No 1 ranked Test side will be pumped up after successfully defending the Border Gavaskar Trophy, which ended with their historic Gabba triumph.
England, who suffered a 0-4 mauling at the hands of India in their last tour (2016/17), will once again start as underdogs.
While the Englishmen haven’t had much success on Indian soil, they have played some remarkable, career-defining knocks that will be cherished by their fans forever. Ahead of the Test series, we take a look at 10 such knocks by England batsman over the years:
1. Joe Root’s 124 (2016/17)
England were outplayed in their last India tour and suffered a 0-4 drubbing in the five-match series. The only Test which was fiercely fought was the first, which ended in a draw.
After opting to bat, England posted a mammoth first innings total of 537, courtesy centuries from Ben Stokes (128), Joe Root (124), Moeen Ali (117).
Moeen and Stokes are naturally attacking batsmen. However, in this Test, it was Root who scored at a much quicker pace than the two left-handers. And yet, the right-hander didn’t take risks as most of his shots were well controlled and played along the ground. Root, with a strike rate of 68.89, struck 11 fours and a maximum in his knock, the highlight being his cover drives against the spinners.
For India, centuries from Murali Vijay (126) and Cheteshwar Pujara (124) guided them to 488.
The visitors, led by Alastair Cook’s 130, declared their second innings at 260/3, which meant a target of 310 runs for the hosts. Eventually, Virat Kohli and Ravindra Jadeja, unbeaten on 49 and 32 respectively, held their ground as the hosts salvaged a draw.
2. Kevin Pietersen's 186 (2012/13)
England did not start the 2012/13 series in India the way they would have liked. However, after suffering a nine-wicket drubbing in the opening Test at Ahmedabad, they bounced back in emphatic fashion, claiming a 10-wicket win in the Mumbai Test.
India, on winning the toss in the second Test, opted to bat and set a first innings total of 327, thanks to Cheteshwar Pujara (135) and Ravichandran Ashwin (68). Spinners Monty Panesar and Graeme Swann were too hot to handle for the hosts and picked up five and four wickets respectively.
In reply, England lost two wickets in quick succession, but skipper and opening batsman Alastair Cook provided some resistance with his century (122).
But it was No 4 batsman Kevin Pietersen, who hogged the limelight with his 186-run knock, which came at a strike rate of 79.83, much quicker than Cook’s strike rate of 45.19. The flamboyant right-hander played shots all around the park, striking 20 boundaries and four sixes. With a valuable 86-run lead, the hosts wasted little time and dismissed India for 142. Monty and Swann were at it once again, claming six and four wickets respectively. A target of 58 wasn’t going to bother the visitors, and as expected, they sealed a memorable 10-wicket win.
3. Alastair Cook's 190 (2012/13)
Both sides headed into the third Test with the series level at 1-1. The hosts still had no answer to Monty, who claimed a four-for, as they were bundled out for 316 in the first innings.
Cook had already shown the temperament to bat through extended periods and struck a fine century in the second Test. He took it up a notch higher in this Test, almost claiming a double hundred, where no batsmen managed to reach the triple figures. The left-hander consumed as many as 377 deliveries for his 190, which included 23 fours and two maximums.
Led by Cook’s 190 alongside three fifties from Compton, Jonathan Trott and Pietersen, England took a massive 207-run lead. India were on the backfoot in the second innings and could only manage an excess of 41 runs, resulting in a seven-wicket win for England.
4. Paul Collingwood's 134 (2005/06)
In the opening Test in 2006, England lost almost half their batting line-up, at 136/4, but No 5 batsman Paul Collingwood battled it out and struck a brilliant unbeaten century (134*), which included 13 fours and four sixes. Cook (60) and Flintoff (43) played handy knocks but Collingwood, who consumed 252 deliveries, was the glue around whom the batting line up revolved. After being dismissed for 393 in their first innings, England, led by Matthew Hoggard (6/57), dismissed India for 323.
Even in the second essay, Cook (104*) and Collingwood (36*) took responsibility in their hands as the visitors set a competitive target of 368. Meanwhile, for India, Jaffer (100) and Dravid (71) played handy knocks. Post their departure, the hosts avoided any risks and were happy to settle for a draw. The series too, was drawn as India and England claimed one win apiece in the final two Tests.
5. Andrew Strauss' 128 (2005/06)
In 2006, India took a 1-0 lead in the three-match series with a nine-wicket win in the second Test. The hosts, led by skipper Rahul Dravid, were favourites to final Test. However, England, despite missing six fronline players, sealed a memorable series-levelling win by 212 runs.
After being asked to bat, England posted 400 runs on the board, with Andrew Strauss top-scoring with a fine century (128).
On a Mumbai pitch where most batsmen, barring Owais Shah (88) and Andrew Flintoff (50), struggled for runs, Strauss showed his class. The left-hander struck 17 fours and a maximum, the highlight being his backfoot play against spinners Harbhajan Singh and Anil Kumble.
In reply, James Anderson starred with a four-for as the visitors were bundled out for 279. Notably, he effected the run out of top-scorer MS Dhoni and picked up the prized scalp of Dravid (52).
India put on a better bowling performance in the second innings, dismissing England for 191. And requiring 313 for a win, the hosts were skittled out for 100 in the face of superb bowling by Shaun Udal (4/14) and Flintoff (3/14).
While Strauss was the lone centurion in the Test, Flintoff bagged the Player of the Match and Player of Series for his all-round effort.
6. Ian Botham's 114 (1979/80)
India were dismissed for 242 in the first innings after opting to bat. No batsman failed to reach the 50-run mark as Ian Botham, the pick of the English bowlers, finished with figures of 6/58.
The Test, indeed, belonged to Botham, who got in the act once again, slamming a superb century at a time when none of the batsmen from his side managed to score a fifty. Notably, Botham’s 114 also came at a quick pace. He had a strike rate of 79.17, a rare sight as far as batting in the 1980’s concerned. Botham’s knock, studded with 17 fours, helped the victors gain a 54-run lead.
The Botham show wasn’t over yet as he produced even better bowling figures (7/48) in the second essay as India were bundled out for a paltry 149. Barring Dilip Vengasarkar, the right-arm seamer accounted for the entire top and middle order. England eventually chased India’s meagre target of 96 with 10 wickets in hand.
7. Dennis Amiss 179 (1976/77)
England thrashed India by an innings and 25 runs in the first Test of their 1976/77 tour. The five-match series followed a similar pattern in the remaining Tests as England clinched the series 3-1.
Led by Dennis Amiss’ 179 along with handy contributions from Alan Knott (75) and John Lever (53), England posted 381 on the board. At a time when life wasn’t easy for most batsman at the crease, Amiss looked a class apart. Consuming as many as 397 balls, the centurion struck 22 fours and a maximum.
In reply, India were bundled out for a paltry 122, thanks to John Lever, who bowled a clinical spell of 7/46. The follow-on was enforced, and although India batted slightly better in the second essay where they scored 234, it wasn’t enough. England batters didn’t have to walk out to the crease in second innings, resulting in a humiliating defeat for the hosts.
8. Ken Barrington's 172 (1961/62)
England lost the five-match series in 1961/62 with a 2-0 scoreline. And the margin of the series loss could have been far worse had Ken Barrington not come to their rescue on multiple occasions.
With three centuries and a fifty, the right-hander amassed 594 runs in the series, the most by an any English batsman in India till date. His best, however, came in the second Test at Kanpur, where India, led by Polly Umrigar’s 147, declared at 467/8 in the first innings. The visitors were in a precarious position after being bundled out for 244, thanks to Subhash Gupte, who claimed a five-wicket haul.
Following on, with a 223-run lead ahead of them, England finished the Test at 497/5. Led by Barrington (172 off 406 balls), who struck 26 fours, and handy centuries from Geoff Pullar (119 off 313 balls) and Ted Dexter (126* off 256 balls), the visitors salvaged a famous draw.
9. Mike Gatting's 207(1984/85)
England’s tour of India in 1984/85 was evenly poised, with a win apiece in the first two Tests and a draw in the third. But the visitors took a lead in the fourth Test at Chennai with a nine-wicket win.
Half centuries from Mohinder Amarnath (78) and Kapil Dev (58) could only take India as far as 272. Neil Foster, the pick of the English bowlers, claimed a six-for.
In reply, opener Graeme Fowler tired the Indian bowlers, scoring a brilliant double ton (201 off 409 balls). Still, Fowler didn’t finish as the top-scorer as No 3 batsman Mike Gatting struck a much quicker double ton (207 off 309 balls). Eventually, the visitors posted a mammoth (652/7 declared), gaining a sizeable lead of 380.
India put on a much better show in the second innings but 412 is all they could manage, courtesy Mohammed Azharuddin’s 105 and Amarnath’s 95. Foster once again came to England’s rescue, claiming a five-for and setting up an easy chase of 33.
Leading England’s batting line-up, Gatting finished with a mind-boggling average of 95.83 in their 2-1 series win.
10. Colin Cowdrey's 151 (1963/64)
England’s Test tour of India in 1964 was a unique affair as all five matches ended in a draw. From the visitors’ perspective, it was a memorable tour for Colin Cowdrey, who did not feature in the first two Tests but struck two centuries in the remaining tour.
After opting to bat, India managed 344 in the first innings, largely thanks to Hanumant Singh’s 105. In reply, England’s Brian Bolus (58) and Peter Parfitt (67) looked good but the best was yet to come for England.
Coming into the fourth Test on the back of a ton, Cowdrey made the most of his fine form and stuck a brilliant 151, a knock studded with 23 fours and a maximum.
England’s first innings total of 451 meant a 107-run lead but Mansur Ali Khan Pataudi’s 203* and Chandu Borde’s 67* halted visitors’ victory march post a century by Budhi Kunderan, resulting in a draw.
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Paris: Paris Saint-Germain suffered their first defeat under Mauricio Pochettino as lowly Lorient fought back to claim a dramatic 3-2 victory on Sunday, allowing Lille to go top of Ligue 1.
Neymar scored two penalties but the visitors collapsed late on at the Stade du Moustoir, as Nigerian Terem Moffi netted an injury-time winner.
PSG drop to third, one point behind second-placed Lyon, with Lille a further two points ahead after their 1-0 win over Dijon.
"We have to keep the positive aspects and move forward," said former Tottenham manager Pochettino.
"Accidents happen in football. We have to keep working. It makes us realise that it can happen if we don't play at 100 percent."
It was the first defeat in six games as PSG coach for Pochettino since he took over from the sacked Thomas Tuchel.
The win takes struggling Lorient into the relegation play-off spot.
"(Moffi's goal) was magical. Against PSG, it's even crazier," said Lorient's Laurent Abergel, who scored the opening goal.
"For a Marseille fan like me, the first dream is perhaps to play for OM and the second to beat PSG."
Lorient started brightly and had the first real shot in anger in the 30th minute, as Adrian Grbic's long-range strike had to be pushed away by PSG goalkeeper Sergio Rico.
The hosts did take the lead six minutes later, though, as PSG failed several times to clear and Abergel picked out the top corner with the outside of his left boot.
Neymar levelled on the stroke of half-time from the penalty spot with his fifth league goal of the season.
PSG improved after the break and took the lead in the 57th minute as Houboulang Mendes, who also conceded the first penalty, brought down Mauro Icardi and Neymar again made no mistake.
It was the first time since Zlatan Ibrahimovic in 2015 that a PSG player had netted two spot-kicks in a Ligue 1 match.
The visitors pressed for a third, but Lorient goalkeeper Matthieu Dreyer made an excellent stop to keep out an Icardi header.
That proved to be crucial, as the stubborn home side equalised in the 80th minute.
Substitute Yoane Wissa scored an excellent individual goal, his sixth of his first full campaign as a top-flight player.
PSG went in search of a winner, but the closest they came saw full-back Layvin Kurzawa's drive fly narrowly wide.
They over-committed in the second minute of added time, leaving no defenders within 60 yards of their own goal as Moffi was sent racing clean through.
The 21-year-old, on as a sub, slotted the ball into the bottom corner to spark wild celebrations for the home team.
Lille march on
Christophe Galtier's Lille took full advantage of PSG's slip-up with their fourth straight league success.
Sven Botman missed an early chance for the home side against Dijon, but Lille took a 29th-minute lead through Yusuf Yazici.
It was the 24-year-old Turkish international's sixth league goal of the season, despite having only made seven starts in the Ligue 1 campaign.
Jonathan Bamba wasted an excellent opportunity to double the lead midway through the second half when he headed over from close range, but Lille comfortably saw out victory.
"Now, we are in the shoes of the hunted," said Lille coach Galtier. "You have to appreciate it and take it on. We'll see how we react."
Lille are bidding for their first major trophy since winning both Ligue 1 and the French Cup in 2011.
Monaco are also in the hunt after their fifth win on the bounce, 2-1 at Nantes, which puts Nico Kovac's side six points behind leaders Lille and just three behind PSG in the hunt for Champions League spots.
Guillermo Maripan headed home the opener in first half stoppage time, and Kevin Volland doubled their lead just before the hour mark.
Renaud Emond pulled one back for Nantes with eight minutes remaining despite Nicolas Pallois having been sent off for dissent 10 minutes before, but remain winless under new coach Raymond Domenech.
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मडगांवमार्सेलिन्हो और रॉय कृष्णा के गोल की मदद से एटीके मोहन बागान ने रविवार को फुटबॉल टूर्नमेंट में केरल ब्लास्टर्स को 3-2 से हरा दिया। आईएसएल () के इस मुकाबले में केरल ब्लास्टर्स की टीम ने गैरी हूपर (14वें मिनट) और कोस्टा एनहामोईनेसु (51वें मिनट) के गोल की बदौलत 2-0 की बढ़त बनाई। एटीके मोहन बागान ने हालांकि मार्सेलिन्हो (59वें मिनट) और कृष्णा (65वें और 87वें मिनट) के दो गोल की बदौलत जोरदार वापसी करते हुए जीत दर्ज की। पढ़ें, एटीके मोहन बागान की 14 मैचों में यह आठवीं जीत है। टीम के अब 27 अंक हो गए हैं और वह तालिका में दूसरे नंबर पर है। मौजूदा चैंपियन अब टेबल टॉपर मुंबई सिटी से तीन अंक ही पीछे है। केरल टीम को 15 मैचों में छठी हार का सामना करना पड़ा है और वह 15 अंकों के साथ नौवें नंबर पर कायम है। इस हार के साथ ही केरला का पिछले पांच मैचों से चला आ रहा अजेयक्रम टूट गया। चेन्नै को हराकर हैदराबाद तीसरे स्थान पर हैदराबाद एफसी ने रविवार को वास्को में खेले गए मुकाबले में चेन्नैयिन एफसी को 2-0 से हराकर प्ले ऑफ में क्वॉलिफाइ करने की अपनी उम्मीदों को मजबूत किया। हैदराबाद की टीम की ओर से फ्रेन सेंडाजा (28वें मिनट) और जोएल चियानीज (82वें मिनट) ने गोल दागे। इस जीत की बदौलत टीम अंक तालिका में तीसरे स्थान पर पहुंच गई है। हैदराबाद एफसी ने शुरुआत से ही मैच में दबदबा बनाया और चेन्नै टीम को कोई मौका नहीं दिया।
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कोयंबटूर स्टार रेसर ने अपने कौशल और संयम का अच्छा नजारा पेश करते हुए रविवार को कोयंबटूर रैली जीतकर नैशनल रैली चैंपियनशिप का खिताब अपने नाम किया। गिल और नेवीगेटर मूसा शेरिफ ने अपना अच्छा प्रदर्शन जारी रखा। उन्होंने पिछले महीने ईटानगर में दो चरण जीते थे और और फिर से दिखाया कि राष्ट्रीय रैली में उनका कोई जवाब नहीं है। गिल और मूसा ने अब तक 63 रैली में साथ में हिस्सा लिया है। जीत के बाद गिल ने कहा, ‘मैं लगातार तीन रैली जीतकर और सातवीं बार राष्ट्रीय चैंपियन बनकर बहुत खुश हूं।’ गिल और मूसा अब तक मिलकर 63 रैली में भाग ले चुके हैं। इनमें से 39 रैली उन्होंने पूरी की, 38 में वे पोडियम पर पहुंचे जिनमें 36 में पहले स्थान पर रहे।
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नई दिल्लीदो बार के ओलिंपियन बैडमिंटन खिलाड़ी () को मस्तिष्क का ट्यूमर है और गुरुवार को मुंबई में उनकी सर्जरी होगी। भारतीय बैडमिंटन संघ (बीएआई) ने रविवार को यह जानकारी दी। दीपांकर ने 1992 बार्सिलोना और 1996 अटलांटा ओलिंपिक में भारत का प्रतिनिधित्व किया। यह 48 वर्षीय खिलाड़ी 1992 ओलिंपिक के प्री क्वॉर्टर फाइनल में पहुंचा। वह तीन बार राष्ट्रीय चैंपियन भी रहे। जानें, बीएआई ने अपने आधिकारिक ट्विटर हैंडल पर कहा, ‘दो बार के ओलिंपियन और राष्ट्रीय चैंपियन दीपांकर भट्टाचार्य को मस्तिष्क का ट्यूमर है। उन्हें हिंदुजा अस्पताल में भर्ती कराया गया है जहां चार फरवरी को उनकी सर्जरी होगी।’
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भारतीय क्रिकेट टीम ने कप्तान विराट कोहली (Virat Kohli) के पितृत्व अवकाश पर स्वदेश लौटने और कई खिलाड़ियों के चोटिल होने के बावजूद ऑस्ट्रेलिया को उसी की सरजमीं पर चार मैचों की श्रृंखला में 2-1 से हराया। भारतीय टीम के इस साहसिक प्रदर्शन की प्रधानमंत्री मोदी ने रविवार को 'मन की बात' (Mann Ki Baat) में जिक्र किया और खिलाड़ियों की प्रशंसा की। मोदी ने अपने संबोधन में कहा, 'इस महीने, क्रिकेट पिच से भी बहुत अच्छी खबर मिली। हमारी क्रिकेट टीम ने शुरुआती दिक्कतों के बाद, शानदार वापसी करते हुए ऑस्ट्रेलिया में सीरीज जीती। हमारे खिलाड़ियों की कड़ी मेहनत और टीम वर्क प्रेरित करने वाला है।'
प्रधानमंत्री नरेंद्र मोदी (Narendra Modi) ने ऑस्ट्रेलिया के हाल के दौरे में भारतीय टीम की 'कड़ी मेहनत और 'टीम वर्क' की सराहना की जिस पर भारतीय क्रिकेट कंट्रोल बोर्ड (BCCI) और खिलाड़ियों ने आभार व्यक्त करते हुए कहा कि इससे भविष्य में कड़ी परिस्थितियों में अच्छा प्रदर्शन करने के उनके संकल्प को मजबूती मिलेगी।
भारतीय क्रिकेट टीम ने कप्तान विराट कोहली (Virat Kohli) के पितृत्व अवकाश पर स्वदेश लौटने और कई खिलाड़ियों के चोटिल होने के बावजूद ऑस्ट्रेलिया को उसी की सरजमीं पर चार मैचों की श्रृंखला में 2-1 से हराया। भारतीय टीम के इस साहसिक प्रदर्शन की प्रधानमंत्री मोदी ने रविवार को 'मन की बात' (Mann Ki Baat) में जिक्र किया और खिलाड़ियों की प्रशंसा की। मोदी ने अपने संबोधन में कहा, 'इस महीने, क्रिकेट पिच से भी बहुत अच्छी खबर मिली। हमारी क्रिकेट टीम ने शुरुआती दिक्कतों के बाद, शानदार वापसी करते हुए ऑस्ट्रेलिया में सीरीज जीती। हमारे खिलाड़ियों की कड़ी मेहनत और टीम वर्क प्रेरित करने वाला है।'
@PMOIndia @narendramodi Sincere thanks and gratitude to Honourable Prime minister for recognising the performance o… https://t.co/6xWMGLWC2W
San Diego: Patrick Reed was so unaffected by a rules controversy a day earlier that he won the Farmers Insurance Open by five shots, the biggest margin in his nine career PGA Tour victories.
Reed closed with a 4-under 68 at Torrey Pines, making an eagle on the par-5 sixth and finishing off his dominating Sunday with a birdie on the 18th.
The former Masters champions finished at 14 under after a consistent four days at the blufftop municipal courses overlooking the Pacific Ocean. He shared the first-round lead with Alex Noren, was in a group one shot off the lead in the second round and then shared the third-round lead with Carlos Ortiz.
Reed said staying mentally strong, as well as good play with his wedge and putter, were able to "keep me in the golf tournament and really allowed me to have a fun stroll up 18."
The controversy arose Saturday on the par-4 10th when Reed hit a 190-yard shot out of a bunker with a TV replay showing the ball bounced once before settling into the rough. Without waiting for an official, Reed picked up the ball to see if it was embedded.
Reed told the official that no one in his group, as well as a nearby volunteer, saw it bounce. He was awarded a free drop and saved par in a round of 70.
On Sunday, Reed jump-started his round with a 45-foot eagle putt on the No. 6 to get to 12 under and followed with a birdie on the par-4 seventh. His only bogey was on the par-3 eighth, and he rebounded with a birdie on the par-5 ninth. He played par the rest of the way until sinking an 8-foot birdie putt on No. 18.
"I was allowed to kind of put it behind me when the head rules official comes up and says you did everything you were supposed to do," Reed said. "When you do everything you're supposed to do, at the end of the day that's all you can control. Going into today, I felt good, I felt confident and really went to the golf course, plugged in my headphones and just kind of got in my world with my coach and got to that first tee."
Tony Finau, Xander Schauffele, Ryan Palmer, Henrik Norlander and Viktor Hovland tied for second.
Reed said he was resilient.
"I knew today was going to be a grind, especially with that leaderboard and seeing how many big names were right around there at the top. I knew you were going to have to go out and play on offence. You couldn't play defence. You had to go out there and shoot a number.
"It was kind of shaky there early on in the beginning, kind of a couple shots that seemed to kind of get a little bit away from me. But I was able to rely on the short game early and get in a groove there in the middle of the round."
Hovland had been the closest in pursuit with four birdies on the front nine, including on the ninth to get to 12 under. But the birdies dried up and he bogeyed Nos. 14, 15 and 17 — missing a 2-footer on 17 — in a round of 1-under 71.
"The front nine was awesome, made four birdies and was just really solid tee to green; made some putts there as well," Hovland said. "On the back I didn't really feel like I played bad at all, you know, it was just a couple of mistakes and it's so easy to just let things kind of slip away.
"But it's cool to kind of be up there having a chance to win. Didn't work out this time, but I feel like I learned a lot."
Ortiz stumbled badly with a round of 6-over 78. He hurt himself with three bogeys on the front nine that left him even at the turn.
He had even more trouble on the back nine, when he bogeyed No. 11 and then had trouble getting out of a greenside bunker on No. 12, taking a double-bogey 6. He bogeyed 15, 16 and 18.
Rory McIlroy closed with a 1-over 73 and finished eight shots behind, and still was a big part of Sunday. With so much attention on Reed taking relief from the embedded lie Saturday, McIlroy had something similar happen on the 18th hole in the third round.
When he finally found it, he determined it was embedded, informed the other two players in his group and dropped it into deep rough right of the fairway.
The PGA Tour issued a statement earlier Sunday that both players proceeded under the rules. Reed took one extra step by calling for a rules official to confirm, though he had already removed the ball from where it had been.
"You're trying to deal with the info that you have at that time, and the info that Patrick had at that time was the ball hadn't bounced and the info that I had at that time was the same," McIlroy said. "And I went down and on my life, that ball of mine was plugged, it was in its own pitch mark, so I took relief.
"In golf, you'd rather be on the wrong side of the rules than the right side of them, just because that's just what our game's about."
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Milan: Roma maintained third spot in Serie A on Sunday with a 3-1 win over Hellas Verona to keep the pressure on the Milan teams leading the title race.
Captain Edin Dzeko was again sidelined after a fall-out with coach Paulo Fonseca, but Roma shrugged off his absence to stay six points behind leaders AC Milan and four adrift of Inter.
"The team is showing that it does not depend on a single player," said Fonseca.
"Our first-half was perfect. It wasn't easy to score three goals against one of the best defences in the league."
The capital side were three goals up after half an hour at the Stadio Olimpico, despite losing English defender Chris Smalling to a muscular injury early in the first half.
Gianluca Mancini rose to head in a corner in the 20th minute to get Roma into their stride, and two minutes later Borja Mayoral teed up Henrikh Mkhitaryan for a second.
Mayoral added the third himself just before the half-hour, finishing off after Verona goalkeeper Marco Silvestri cleared a Lorenzo Pellegrini volley into the Spaniard's path.
Verona coach Ivan Juric made four substitutions 10 minutes after the break, with Ebrima Colley coming off the bench and nodding in just after the hour mark.
But it failed to spark a fightback for ninth-placed Verona, with Roma getting maximum points before next week's trip to Juventus, who are one point behind in fourth.
Napoli, in fifth, a further two points adrift, rebounded from last weekend's loss at Verona, with a 2-0 win against 19th-placed Parma.
Eljif Elmas broke through after half an hour in Naples, collecting the ball in midfield, beating four opponents and finishing off the solo effort from an angle.
Matteo Politano added a second eight minutes from time with a shot which took a deflection off Parma defender Yordan Osorio.
Coach Gennaro Gattuso hit out at the criticism he faces from "keyboard fans, in the era of lockdown" despite the team being in the running for a Champions League return.
"I get slaughtered every day and it's difficult," complained the former AC Milan coach.
"I'm taking slaps to the right and left every day, you'd think we are last in the standings."
Lazio rebound in Bergamo
Gattuso's side are equal on points with sixth-placed Lazio who rebounded after their midweek Italian Cup defeat to Atalanta with a 3-1 win on their return trip to Bergamo.
The Roman side gained revenge with a dominant display at the Gewiss Stadium for their fifth consecutive league win.
Lazio went ahead in just the third minute with Adam Marusic curling in from a distance. Joaquin Correa doubled the lead from a tight angle six minutes after the break.
Mario Pasalic pulled a goal back for Atalanta with 10 minutes to go, sending in a rebound after Luis Muriel hit the post.
Andreas Pereira and Vedat Muriqi both came off the bench after 80 minutes with the pair combining to create Lazio's third which Muriqi tapped in two minutes later.
"The goal at the beginning changed the game," said Atalanta coach Gian Piero Gasperini after his team fell to their first league defeat in two months.
Atalanta drop to seventh, one point behind Lazio.
In Sardinia, Jeremie Boga scored deep into injury time to rescue a 1-1 draw for eighth-placed Sassuolo, who are six points off the Europa League places.
Cagliari remain in the relegation zone after stretching their winless league run to 13 games.
Elsewhere, Rodrigo De Paul scored the only goal from the penalty spot and was later sent off against Spezia to end Udinese's eight-match winless run in a game both teams finished with 10 players.
Udinese move up to 13th after their first win since December 12 with Spezia dropping to 16th, four points above the relegation zone.
Genoa got back-to-back wins for the first time this season, 3-0 at rock bottom Crotone, with in-form Mattia Destro scoring twice for the port side, who are in 14th place.
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Lionel Messi showed his worth yet again, scoring on a beautiful free kick to lead Barcelona to a 2-1 win over Athletic Bilbao in the Spanish league on Sunday.
The 650th goal in his Barcelona career came amid the noise prompted by Spanish newspaper El Mundo's report that his contract is worth 555 million euros ($673 million) over four seasons. The Catalan club, mired in debt and political turmoil, had to quickly deny their involvement in the leak.
Antoine Griezmann also scored for Barcelona, who won their fifth in a row in the league and moved into second place for the first time this season. They have the same 40 points as Real Madrid but are ahead on goal difference. Atlético earlier opened a 10-point lead after winning 4-2 at Cádiz with a pair of goals by Luis Suárez.
Messi, who had his request to leave Barcelona denied by the club last season, seemed unaffected by the leak Sunday of his contract details. He played well from the start and was decisive again at the Camp Nou Stadium. The Argentine great opened the scoring in the 20th minute with a free kick that curled over the wall and found the top corner for his 12th league goal.
"Messi has done a lot for this club and today he scored a great free kick goal," Barcelona coach Ronald Koeman said. "We have to respect him. It seems there is bad intention and a desire to hurt him. Without Messi you can't aspire too much."
Athletic equalised with an own-goal by Jordi Alba as the defender tried to clear a cross by Raúl García in the 49th, and Griezmann put Barcelona ahead again, completing a cross by Óscar Mingueza in the 75th.
It was the third meeting between Barcelona and Athletic this month, with the Catalan club winning a postponed league game and losing the Spanish Super Cup final.
Athletic were trying to win their sixth consecutive match in all competitions. The loss was only their second since coach Marcelino García Toral was signed in the beginning of the year — the first also was against Barcelona.
It was Barcelona's first home match in 2021. They had played eight consecutive games away from the Camp Nou, including in the Copa del Rey and the Spanish Super Cup.
RED-HOT SUÁREZ
Suárez continued his stellar form with Atlético, scoring twice in the win over Cádiz to help Diego Simeone's team open a huge lead at the top.
Suárez scored a goal in each half to reach 14 league goals this season, marking his best-ever league start in Spain and becoming the league's leading scorer. The Uruguay striker, who was let go by Barcelona at the end of last season, has scored nine goals in his last eight matches with Atlético.
"When a striker is on a roll, you have to take advantage of it," Suárez said. "You have to enjoy it because it's hard to stay at this level the whole year."
It was the eighth league win in a row for Atlético, who reach the halfway mark of the season with the 10-point gap to Barcelona and Real Madrid despite having a game in hand.
"Every match is an important step toward reaching our goal," Simeone said. "To continue like this we have to keep focused on match after match."
Simeone's team has 50 points from 19 matches, remaining on pace for a 100-point season for the first time.
"These are important numbers that put us at the top," Suárez said. "We have to stay on this path."
Suárez opened the scoring with a well-placed curling free kick in the 28th and added his second from the penalty spot in the 50th.
Saúl Ñíguez netted before halftime and Koke Resurrección got on the board near the end of the match to complete the scoring for Atlético, who are seeking their first league title since 2014.
Cádiz, winless in their last three league matches and sitting 13th in the standings, got goals from Álvaro Negredo in the 35th and 71st minutes.
OTHER RESULTS
Celta Vigo and Granada failed to move closer to the top of the standings after a scoreless draw in Granada. Celta, winless in their past six games in all competitions, stayed in 10th place. Granada are seventh.
Celta were held despite the return of striker Iago Aspas, who had been sidelined for nearly a month because of a muscle injury.
Earlier on Sunday, 12th-place Getafe were held to a 0-0 draw against Alavés, who had lost four in a row in all competitions and are just inside in the relegation zone.
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Bambolim: Virtually out of contention for a play-offs spot, bottom-placed Odisha FC will play for pride when they take on Jamshedpur FC in an Indian Super League match on Monday.
The Kalinga Warriors have won just one game while losing seven and are at the bottom of the 11-team league with eight points.
But they did record two draws in the last two encounters against better teams and head coach Stuart Baxter urged his side to step up and turn things around.
"At the moment, we need to start (turning) those good performances that ended in a draw to good performances that result in a win," he said.
"We are not talking about the play-offs till about two to three weeks. We're talking about getting to the next game. And, hopefully, we will get a victory — that's what we have been trying to do since the season started," he added.
The last time the two teams clashed, they split points in a four-goal thriller.
Baxter is anticipating another tough fixture on Monday.
"Owen's (Coyle) team is usually very competitive. I've seen them play games where they don''t give up and they''ve got some good players. So I don''t expect anything less than a difficult game," said Baxter.
Jamshedpur find themselves in an almost similar situation, though they still have a chance for the play-offs. While Odisha have dropped points in their last four games, it''s been five matches since JFC registered a win.
JFC have also failed to score in three out of their last four games. With the top four looking ever so distant, coach Coyle will be looking to turn his team''s goal-scoring form around.
"The way for us is to try and win those games which can make a difference, from one point to three points. We have six massive games ahead of us but we will take each game at a time starting with Odisha. We want to try and win that game," he said.
"Odisha have some very good players. When you look at the forward players, they are capable of scoring goals. It will be an exciting game as both teams would want to win," Coyle said.
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London: Mohamed Salah scored twice as Liverpool muscled their way back into the Premier League title race with a 3-1 win at West Ham on Sunday after Thomas Tuchel celebrated his first victory as Chelsea boss.
Jurgen Klopp's injury-hit champions appeared to have lost their way after a five-game winless spell but are back on track after beating Tottenham and West Ham in the space of 72 hours.
Earlier, defenders Cesar Azpilicueta and Marcos Alonso showed Chelsea's misfiring strikers the way, producing stunning finishes in a 2-0 win against toothless Burnley.
Leicester, looking to close to within two points of leaders Manchester City, lost 3-1 to Leeds and Tottenham went down 1-0 to Brighton in the evening kick-off.
Defeat for Brendan Rodgers' Foxes meant Liverpool – with no fit senior centre-backs and missing forward Sadio Mane – had the chance to climb to third in the table.
Two goals from Egypt international Salah and a late Georginio Wijnaldum effort lifted them to 40 points after 21 games, a single point behind Manchester United and four behind leaders Manchester City.
Salah, who had not scored in six Premier League matches, put the visitors ahead in the 57th minute with a fine curling lob over Lukasz Fabianski and added the second after a lightning break following a West Ham corner.
Liverpool grabbed a third when substitutes Roberto Firmino and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain combined to set up Wijnaldum for a tap-in before a late consolation for West Ham's Craig Dawson.
Salah is the first player to score at least 20 goals in all competitions in four consecutive seasons for Liverpool since Ian Rush in the 1980s.
"It was a great game, a very professional game, very controlled against usually a flying side," Klopp told Sky Sports.
"We didn't create enough in the first half. We made little adjustments at half-time and it paid off. We scored three unbelievable goals."
"These boys are a really good group," he added. "They're not happy at not being successful, not winning, but they always have the right attitude."
Tuchel celebrates
Chelsea manager Tuchel celebrated his first victory as manager of the Stamford Bridge club.
The former Paris Saint-Germain boss was brought in to replace Frank Lampard last week with a brief to haul the stuttering side back into the race for Champions League spots.
He oversaw a frustrating goalless draw against Wolves in midweek but two moments of magic from Azpilicueta and forgotten man Alonso mean the German has four points from six.
Tuchel said the victory would infuse his side with confidence but admitted they needed to sharpen up their finishing after both goals came from defenders.
"It should be a signal to our guys up front that we needed defensive players to score," he told BT Sport.
"We lacked precision in the last pass and touch, but in the finishing we will work on this absolutely. We had a lot of touches, half-chances and deliveries in the box, but in the end I could not care less."
Leicester, unbeaten in seven Premier League games heading into their match against Leeds at the King Power Stadium, had a chance to put real pressure on Manchester City.
Harvey Barnes gave the home side the lead in the 13th minute but Leeds were level just 127 seconds later when Patrick Bamford set up Stuart Dallas, who beat Kasper Schmeichel with a low finish.
Bamford struck a superb shot into the top corner to put the visitors ahead in the 70th minute and teed up Jack Harrison for a tap-in.
"We have to go away and learn from that and then look to get back to winning ways on Wednesday," said Rodgers, who is missing leading scorer Jamie Vardy.
Jose Mourinho's Spurs, without the injured Harry Kane, slipped to their second successive defeat, courtesy of a first-half goal for Brighton's Leandro Trossard.
Tottenham, who topped the table last month, remain in sixth place, 11 points behind City and six behind fourth-placed Leicester, though they have a game in hand.
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नई दिल्लीभारत और इंग्लैंड के बीच 24 फरवरी से अहमदाबाद में शुरू होने वाले टेस्ट मैच में दर्शकों को आने की इजाजत मिल सकती है। यह मैच मोटेरा में नए बने सरदार वल्लभभाई पटेल स्टेडियम में खेला जाएगा। पिछले साल कोविड-19 के बाद शायद पहली बार दर्शकों के लिए अंतरराष्ट्रीय मुकाबले के लिए मैदान के दरवाजे खोले जा रहे हैं। भारत और इंग्लैंड के बीच टेस्ट सीरीज का आगाज 5 फरवरी से चेन्नै में होगा। यह मैच खाली स्टेडियम में खेला जाएगा। इसके अलावा दूसरे मैच में दर्शकों को आने की इजाजत होगी अथवा नहीं इसके बारे में भी अभी कोई पुष्टि नहीं की गई है। यह मैच भी इसी मैदान पर खेला जाएगा। अंग्रेजी अखबार द इंडियन एक्सप्रेस की खबर के अनुसार बीसीसीआई ने इस मैच के लिए प्रधानमंत्री नरेंद्र मोदी, बीजेपी अध्यक्ष जेपी नड्डा और केंद्रीय खेल मंत्री किरन रिजिजू को भी न्योता भेजा है। साथ ही केंद्रीय गृहमंत्री , जो गुजरात क्रिकेट असोसिएशन (जीसीए) के अध्यक्ष भी हैं, भी मौजूद रह सकते हैं। स्टेडियम में सीरीज का चौथा और आखिरी मैच भी खेला जाएगा। इसके बाद इसी मैदान पर पांच टी20 मुकाबले खेले जाएंगे। बीसीसीआई के एक सूत्र के हवाले से अखबार ने आगे लिखा है, 'इस मैदान पर दर्शकों की क्षमता एक लाख से ज्यादा है। ऐसे में जीसीए तीसरे और चौथे टेस्ट मैच के लिए आसानी से 50 प्रतिशत सीटों पर दर्शकों को बैठा सकता है। सरकार ने स्टेडियमों में 50 फीसदी क्षमता के साथ दर्शकों को बुलाने की इजाजत दे रखी है तो अहमदाबाद मैच के लिए फैंस को बुलाने का फैसला किया गया है। मीडिया भी इस मैच को कवर करेगा।' पीएम मोदी ने करीब सालभर पहले इसी मैदान पर अमेरिका के तत्कालीन राष्ट्रपति डॉनल्ड ट्रंप के लिए 'नमस्ते ट्रंप' रैली में शिरकत की थी।
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नई दिल्लीऑस्ट्रेलिया के टी20 टूर्नमेंट बिग बैश लीग में शनिवार को खराब अंपायरिंग देखने को मिली। सिडनी सिक्सर्स और पर्थ स्कॉर्चर्स के बीच मुकाबले में एक बॉल पर को अंपायर ने आउट करार दे दिया, जो वाइड नजर आ रही थी। सिडनी सिक्सर्स की टीम ने बिग बैश लीग () के मौजूदा सीजन के क्वॉलिफायर मैच में पर्थ स्कॉर्चर्स के खिलाफ 9 विकेट से जीत दर्ज की। इसके साथ ही वह लगातार दूसरी बार फाइनल में पहुंच गई। पर्थ 6 विकेट के नुकसान पर 167 रन बनाए थे। इसके जवाब में सिडनी की टीम ने जेम्स विंस की 98 रनों की नाबाद पारी के दम पर 17 ओवर में ही लक्ष्य हासिल कर लिया। पढ़ें, पर्थ के मिचेल मार्श () खराब अंपायरिंग का शिकार हो गए। मार्श को अंपायर ने वाइड गेंद पर आउट दे दिया। खराब अंपायरिंग के बाद मार्श तो नाराज दिखे ही, साथ ही धुरंधर ऑलराउंडर बेन स्टोक्स और स्टुअर्ट ब्रॉड ने भी निराशा जाहिर की। जब मार्श क्रीज पर थे, पारी के 13वें ओवर में स्टीव ओ कीफ ने लेग साइड पर बेहद वाइड गेंद फेंकी। मार्श ने बल्ला तो चलाया लेकिन गेंद उनके बैट से दूर थी। इसके बावजूद गेंदबाज और विकेटकीपर ने अपील की और अंपायर ने भी आनन-फानन में आउट दे दिया। अंपायर के इस फैसले से मार्श दंग रह गए और वह जोर से 'NO' चिल्लाते नजर आए। मार्श मात्र दो रन ही बना सके। इसके बाद खराब अंपायरिंग पर बेन स्टोक्स और स्टुअर्ट ब्रॉड भड़क गए। इंग्लैंड के ऑलराउंडर बेन स्टोक्स और तेज गेंदबाज स्टुअर्ट ब्रॉड ने सवाल उठाया कि इतनी बड़ी लीग में डीआरएस का इस्तेमाल क्यों नहीं हो रहा है। स्टोक्स ने ट्वीट करते हुए लिखा, 'डीआरएस अंपायरों को गलत साबित करने के लिए नहीं है। धरती पर आखिर डीआरएस का इस्तेमाल हो ही क्यों रहा है। इस तरह की चीजों को होते देखना बेहद निराशाजनक है, जबकि इसका आसान इलाज आपके पास है।' ब्रॉड ने ट्वीट किया, 'वहां वह पागल है। अपने बेस्ट खिलाड़ियों को इस तरह खोना बुरा लगता है। क्या हमें सभी मुकाबलों में डीआरएस का इस्तेमाल नहीं करना चाहिए?'
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Madrid: La Liga chief Javier Tebas has accused FIFA president Gianni Infantino of supporting the launch of a breakaway European Super League despite world football's governing body being officially opposed to the project.
In an interview with AFP, Tebas called on Infantino to deny he is in favour of the controversial breakaway competition that would transform the landscape of European football.
Tebas claims Infantino has been "working on" and "encouraging" its formation and said FIFA's president could even be given a role with the new league once it is set up.
When contacted by AFP, FIFA referred to its statement on 21 January, which was signed by Infantino and said "such a competition would not be recognised by either FIFA or the respective confederation."
FIFA added any club or player participating would be banned from competitions organised by FIFA, such as the World Cup, although it is unclear if such a move would be legal.
Yet Tebas believes Infantino is in favour of a Super League and has even been helping clubs to organise it. "FIFA as an institution have been very clear but Infantino is not FIFA the institution, he is the president and he should clarify his position," Tebas said in an interview with AFP and The Sun newspaper in the UK.
"It is obvious that he has been involved in the meetings. He has been working on it and even been encouraging them to set it up."
"He is not against it," Tebas added. "He thought the project was good."
When asked why Infantino would support a European Super League, Tebas said: "Maybe he has a position in this future Super League that he is going to take up. Otherwise I wouldn't understand it."
Documents containing details of the Super League, first reported this month by British newspaper The Times, proposed a 20-club tournament with 15 permanent members.
They would include the Premier League's 'Big Six', as well as Real Madrid and Barcelona, with those clubs guaranteed billions of euros in revenue.
Tebas believes the documents show Infantino was involved in discussions. "In the documents that we have there is the mention of a code name 'W01' which clearly refers to Mr Infantino. That is his code name," said Tebas.
"So he should urgently clarify his position, his personal position, to explain exactly why he was at some of the meetings and encouraged the project at certain points in time."
'Not going to happen'
Infantino has championed a new, expanded 24-team FIFA Club World Cup which he has said would be the "the best club competition in the world" as well as the most lucrative.
Tebas continued: "In the documents there are also certain dates being held back for the Club World Cup, which is so precious to Infantino. They have kept January free for the Club World Cup and even said who is going to be part of it."
"It is obvious that people involved like (Real Madrid president) Florentino Perez could not have those details if Infantino were against it," added Tebas.
Real Madrid declined to comment.
In October, Infantino said he was "not interested" in a European Super League but stopped short of confirming if he was for or against.
"If he comes out and says it's not true and can prove it, I will apologise," said Tebas. "In football everyone knows everyone and we find out everything that's going on. When I say something it is for a good reason. I know the truth."
As the head of the Spanish league, Tebas has been one of the most vocal opponents of the Super League project, which he says has been driven by Perez at Madrid, as well as the American owners of Liverpool, Manchester United and AC Milan.
Barcelona's outgoing president, Josep Maria Bartomeu, said in October the club had also signed up.
The loss of income from the pandemic has accelerated talks, after Madrid and Barca each posted total debts of around one billion euros ($1.2 billion).
"Barcelona and Real's financial situations are not great but they're not so bad either," said Tebas. "The Super League is just an excuse they are looking for to set up this dream, the dream that Florentino Perez has had for years.
"But while I am in charge of the Spanish league it's not going to happen, that's my opinion," Tebas added. "The whole system will be against it and it won't just sit on its hands. It's going to fight."
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England’s Football Association has vowed to work with the British Government and social media platforms to tackle racism after a spate of incidents over the past week involving Premier League players from Chelsea, West Bromwich Albion and Manchester United being targeted by online abuse.
In the aftermath of his team’s goalless draw with Arsenal on Saturday, Manchester United striker Marcus Rashford claims he was racially abused through social media platforms.
Rashford did not post screenshots of the offensive messages he received post-match, instead tweeting “humanity and social media at its worst.”
Humanity and social media at its worst. Yes I’m a black man and I live every day proud that I am. No one, or no one comment, is going to make me feel any different. So sorry if you were looking for a strong reaction, you’re just simply not going to get it here 👊🏾
“Yes I’m a black man and I live every day proud that I am. No one, or no one comment, is going to make me feel any different. So sorry if you were looking for a strong reaction, you’re just simply not going to get it here.”
“I’m not sharing screenshots. It would be irresponsible to do so and as you can imagine there’s nothing original in them.”
Later Saturday the FA doubled-down on its commitment to stamping out discrimination of all kinds.
A statement released on its official Twitter account on Saturday said: “We are united with all of football in our abhorrence of any racist abuse. This is not acceptable in any part of society.
“We will continue to work with the rest of the game, the government and social media platforms to remove this – and all elements of – discrimination from our sport.”
The FA’s statement comes after several incidences of abuse targeting Premier League players in the past week.
On Friday, a man was arrested on suspicion of racially abusing West Bromwich Albion midfielder Romaine Sawyers online during the team’s 5-0 loss to Manchester City on Tuesday.
Also Friday, Chelsea’s Reece James posted a screenshot of racist messages he had received on Instagram, while Rashford’s Manchester United teammates Axel Tuanzebe and Anthony Martial have also reportedly been targeted this week.
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San Diego: Patrick Reed was involved in another rules controversy Saturday in the Farmers Insurance Open at Torrey Pines. He also had a share of the lead with Carlos Ortiz.
On the par-4 10th, Reed hit a 190-yard shot out of a bunker with a TV replay showing the ball bounced once before settling into the rough. Believing the ball didn't bounce, Reed picked it up to see if it was embedded before a rules official arrived. Reed told the official that no one in his group, as well as a nearby volunteer, saw it bounce.
Reed was awarded a free drop and saved par. He bogeyed four of the next holes before birdieing No. 18 for a 2-under 70 and a share of the lead with Ortiz at 10 under. Ortiz had a 66 on the South Course.
In December 2019 in Tiger Woods' Hero World Challenge in the Bahamas, Reed was penalised two strokes for appearing to deliberately improve his lie in a bunker.
"It's an unfortunate situation obviously, but at the end of the day when you finish a round and the head rules official comes up to you and has the video and shows everything that went down to the whole group and says that you've done this perfectly, you did this the exact right way, the protocols you did were spot on, at that point, you know, I feel great about it," Reed said.
"The ball just disappeared. None of us saw it bounce," said Reed, who added that a nearby volunteer told him that it did not bounce. "I looked at my group and said, 'Guys, she didn't see it bounce it, either, so I'm going to mark this ball and see if it's embedded.'
"Once I marked it, the first thing I wanted to do was make sure I got the ball out of my hand because you don't want to clean it or anything because you don't know if it's embedded yet. When I put my finger down there and felt like it has broken ground, the first thing you do is call the rules official. ... The rules official said, 'Yes, this ball has broken the plane.'"
The ground was soft because of rain overnight Thursday and during the second round Friday, when play was suspended for nearly an hour because of a storm.
"At that point we go with what the rules official said and also with what the volunteers and what we see," Reed said. "When we're out there, we can't see everything and when that happens you have to go with what the volunteers say and what the rules officials say and when all comes push and shove we felt like we did the right thing and the rules official said we did absolutely perfectly."
PGA Tour rules official Ken Tackett said Reed "did all the things we ask to do of a player. It's obviously difficult and you get to second-guessing when see video; soft conditions, there's a lot of variables out there."
The incident on 10 overshadowed Reed's eagle on the par-5 sixth when he reached in two and made a 40-foot putt to get to 12 under. He reached 13 under with a birdie on No. 9.
Reed shared the lead with Alex Noren after the first round and was one shot off the lead after 36 holes.
Sam Burns (70), Lanto Griffin (72), Viktor Hovland (73), Jon Rahm (72) and Adam Scott (72) were two shots back at 8 under. Rory McIlroy (70) was in a group of four at 7 under.
Scott's round included an eagle, a double bogey, five birdies and five bogeys.
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Barcelona: Lionel Messi’s most recent contract with Barcelona is worth up to 555 million euros ($673 million) over four seasons, the El Mundo newspaper reported on Sunday.
The Spanish daily said it had access to the document Messi signed with the Catalan club in 2017, which included fixed incomes and variables that could reach nearly 138 million euros ($167 million) each season. The newspaper said it is the most expensive contract ever paid to an athlete.
Messi would have to pay about half of that amount in taxes in Spain.
The report said the 33-year-old player has already secured more than 510 million euros ($619 million) of the total contract.
The leak comes as Barcelona tries to manage a huge debt prompted mostly because of the coronavirus pandemic. The club has been led by a caretaker board since president Josep Bartomeu resigned in October while facing a no-confidence motion. New presidential elections are scheduled for 7 March.
The newspaper also detailed how Messi rewarded the club over the years, having helped it win more than 30 titles.
Messi has been with Barcelona for nearly two decades but asked to leave at the end of last season after saying he wasn’t happy with the direction the club was headed. He had his request denied but will be able to leave for free when this season ends.
Barcelona can move to second place in the Spanish league with a home win against Athletic Bilbao on Sunday.
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Margao: Having suffered their third defeat of the season, ATK Mohun Bagan will aim to get their mojo back and close in on leaders Mumbai City when they take on Kerala Blasters in the Indian Super League on Sunday.
ATK Mohun Bagan might find themselves in a comfortable spot in the league table, placed second after 14 games. But there's no denying that the former champions have not been at their best lately. Their struggles continued against Northeast United as they slumped to their third defeat of the season.
In their last four matches, the Mariners have witnessed a dip in form, notching just one win while losing twice. Their defence has been under the pump, shipping four goals. In their opening nine games, Bagan conceded just thrice, highlighting their defensive struggles.
Upfront, the lack of missed chances has continued to cost them points, with the Kolkata side scoring just thrice in their last four games. They have netted just 13 goals all season, which is the third-worst tally in the league.
Fresh after acquiring the services of Marcelinho, on-loan from Odisha FC, ATKMB coach Antonio Lopez Habas believes his team is improving despite the recent results but has called for his attack to step up.
"We were improving our performance and our creation of chances in the last few matches but we have to continue with the same purpose," Habas said.
"After the first few matches and the first few rounds of the league, the team consolidated the system and the idea. Now we have to increase our attacking performance," he added.
On the other hand, Kerala, unbeaten in their last five games, are still in contention for the playoffs and are just four points away from fourth place.
While form favours Kerala, it was ATKMB who came out on top when the two sides faced each other in the opening game of the ISL season.
However, for Kerala coach Kibu Vicuna, that result won't have any bearing on Sunday's match.
"It was a question of one detail (defensive mistake), not that they were better than us," said Vicuna, last season's title-winning coach with then-Mohun Bagan himself.
"Now the circumstances are different. ATKMB is the former champion and they are second. They have fantastic players and a good coach. It's going to be a difficult challenge for us," he added.
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Rio de Janeiro: Breno Lopes scored in the ninth minute of injury time as Palmeiras won their second Copa Libertadores title on Saturday with a 1-0 victory over Brazilian rivals Santos at Rio de Janeiro's Maracana stadium.
Traditionally decided over two legs, for the second edition running the final - delayed two months by the Covid-19 pandemic - was played as a one-off contest, kicking off in sweltering heat and inside a largely empty ground.
Breno came on as a late substitute and planted a magnificent header beyond Santos goalkeeper John deep into stoppage time to settle a scrappy encounter and earn Palmeiras a spot in next month's Club World Cup in Qatar.
"I can't describe the emotion," said Breno, calling it an "unforgettable day" as Palmeiras added to their 1999 triumph, when they overcame Colombia's Deportivo Cali on penalties.
"We wanted this title, I was rewarded with the goal and we're the Libertadores champions."
Palmeiras coach Abel Ferreira, 42, became just the third European manager to win the tournament, emulating Portuguese countryman Jorge Jesus who masterminded Flamengo's 2019 triumph. Croatia's Mirko Jozic also won with Colo Colo in 1991.
Palmeiras will pocket $15 million (12.4 million euros) in prize money after winning South America's top club competition, with cash-strapped Santos earning $6 million as runners-up in what was just the third all-Brazilian final.
Palmeiras now face a Club World Cup semi-final on 7 February against either Tigres of Mexico or Asian champions Ulsan Hyundai before a potential final against European champions Bayern Munich.
Santos left with 'no answer'
Santos, who last won the tournament a decade ago when a teenaged Neymar scored in the final, missed out on the opportunity to become the first Brazilian club to lift the trophy for a fourth time.
"We had no answer. It was the last shot," said despondent Santos forward Marinho. "I'm sad not to bring this title home, but we fought until the end."
Despite the ban on supporters from the iconic 80,000-capacity Maracana stadium, the site of one of the city's coronavirus field hospitals, local authorities agreed to grant entry to a few thousand invitees.
Palmeiras, who held on to overcome River Plate in the semi-finals, were without the injured Gabriel Veron, the highly-rated 18-year-old linked to a number of Europe's top clubs.
As for Sao Paulo rivals Santos, who won two of their three Libertadores titles with Pele in the side in the early 1960s, in Kaio Jorge, 19, they have one of the country's most exciting young strikers.
With attacking flair in limited display in the first half, it wasn't until Santos midfielder Diego Pituca's speculative drive on 76 minutes that either team genuinely threatened.
Palmeiras keeper Weverton shovelled the strike away and a fizzing follow-up shot from Felipe Jonatan flashed narrowly wide.
Kaio Jorge then sent a tame overhead kick straight at Weverton, but with the game seemingly destined for extra time there was late drama after Santos coach Cuca was sent off for a touchline tussle with Marcos Rocha.
Santos briefly lost focus as the eight minutes of stoppage time initially allotted elapsed, and Breno peeled off his marker, hanging in the air to head in a deep right-wing cross from Rony to spark jubilant Palmeiras celebrations.
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ब्रासीलियासाल 2014 में के मैचों की मेजबानी करने वाले ब्राजील के एक स्टेडियम में शनिवार को आग लग गई। आग का धुआं सांस के साथ अंदर जाने से कुछ लोग बीमार भी पड़ गए। दमकल विभाग के अनुसार, ब्राजील के पूर्वात्तर शहर फोर्टालेजा के कास्टेलाओ एरेना में आग संभवत: ब्रॉडकास्ट क्षेत्र में शॉर्ट सर्किट के कारण लगी। दमकल विभाग के प्रवक्ता कर्नल आस्कर नेटो ने हालांकि कहा कि आग लगने के कारणों की जांच की जाएगी। पढ़ें, टीवी फुटेज में स्टेडियम के ऊपर से काफी धुआं उड़ता नजर आया। हालांकि यह अभी तक साफ नहीं है कि कितने लोगों को अस्पताल में भर्ती कराना पड़ा।
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बेम्बोलिम (गोवा) नॉर्थईस्ट यूनाइटेड ने मुंबई सिटी एफसी को 2-1 से हराकर फुटबॉल के मौजूदा टूर्नमेंट में इस टीम के खिलाफ लगातार दूसरी जीत दर्ज की।शनिवार को खेले गए आईएसएल () के इस मुकाबले में नॉर्थईस्ट की ओर से डेशोर्न ब्राउन ने पहले हाफ में दो गोल किए जबकि मुंबई की ओर से एकमात्र गोल दूसरे हाफ में एडम डि फोंड्रे ने दागा। इस हार के साथ मुंबई ने लगातार 13वें मैच में अजेय रहकर इतिहास रचने का मौका भी गंवा दिया। नॉर्थईस्ट टीम अंकतालिका में शीर्ष पर चल रहे मुंबई सिटी को मौजूदा सत्र में हराने वाली एकमात्र टीम है। इस जीत से नॉर्थईस्ट टीम 21 अंक के साथ टॉप-4 में पहुंच गई है। पढ़ें, ब्राउन के दो गोलों की मदद से हाईलैंडर्स ने पहले हाफ की समाप्ति 2-0 की लीड के साथ की। दूसरे हाफ में एक तरफ जहां हाईलैंडर्स अपना स्कोर बचाए रखना चाहते थे और आईलैंडर्स नाम से मशहूर मुंबई गोल करते हुए बराबरी करना चाहती थी, लिहाजा मैदान पर फाउल हुए और एक के बाद एक तीन बुकिंग हुई। इसके बाद बदलावों का दौर चला। मुंबई ने 66वें मिनट में दो और 67वें मिनट में एक बदलाव किया जबकि हाईलैंडर्स ने भी 67वें मिनट में एक बदलाव किया। हालांकि हाईलैंडर्स ने यह बदलाव मजबूरी में किया क्योंकि सुधीर वाई. को चोट लग गई थी। 85वें मिनट में हालांकि किस्मत मुंबई पर मेहरबान हुई और सुपर सब एडम लेफोंड्रे ने बार्थोलोमेव ओग्बेचे की मदद से गोल करते हुए स्कोर 1-2 कर दिया। इसके बाद कोई गोल नहीं हुआ और नॉर्थईस्ट ने मुकाबला अपने नाम कर लिया।
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Melbourne: Poland's first Grand Slam singles champion Iga Swiatek insisted Sunday her expectations were low for the Australian Open, with the teen star keen to take the pressure off and focus on having fun.
The 19-year-old ensured her place in history by winning the French Open last year, crushing defending Australian Open champion Sofia Kenin 6-4, 6-1.
Back in Melbourne for the opening major of the year on 8 February, she plays her first match since that breakthrough in the warm-up Gippsland Trophy this week after a fortnight of mandatory quarantine.
"Well, I'm not anxious, I'm mostly excited," she said.
"Basically I have, like, some amount of stress, but it's a normal amount.
"I don't feel more pressure than before French Open. Actually, I'm kind of confident that I can play good tennis, but it all depends on my preparation, on my attitude.
"I'm trying to keep my expectations low, even though I did a really good pre-season."
Swiatek, now ranked 17, admitted her life changed with victory at Roland Garros, going from a largely unknown teenager to celebrity status as the youngest woman to win in Paris since Monica Seles in 1992.
But the Pole, whose father Tomasz is a former Olympic rower who competed in the 1988 Games in Seoul, said she was embracing the extra obligations that came with stardom.
"It's not bothering. It's really nice. In Poland it's more often, but I'm really happy about it. It's not a problem for me," she said of the attention.
"Obviously I have more media obligations. Right now I feel like there are more eyes on me.
"But it's not like something new for me because even though I didn't win many tournaments before, it was step by step since I was 14. So it's okay for me."
Voted the most improved player at the 2020 WTA Awards, she attributed her run at Roland Garros to being relaxed and having fun, a trait she plans to take into the Australian Open.
"Actually right before the (French Open) tournament I had my own doubts and I didn't know if I'm going to be ready to play my best tennis," she said.
"I changed my attitude ... and didn't think about winning, just focused on having fun on court, not all the expectations.
"Even though it seems really weird not to care before a tournament, sometimes it's good because you can have this distance and you can see things not in an emotional way, but more rationally.
"Yeah, I'm going to try to do that (at the Australian Open), but I don't know if I can just snap fingers and do it."
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Vasco: Hyderabad FC will have a chance to move to the third spot on the Indian Super League table and boost their playoff chances when they take on Chennaiyin FC at the Tilak Maidan on Sunday.
A win will help Hyderabad overtake FC Goa, who currently occupy the third spot, and get closer to ATK Mohun Bagan who also play on Sunday.
However, for Chennaiyin, three points are exactly what separates them and their opponents in the day's early kickoff.
Current form would favour Hyderabad who are not only playing well, but are on a six-match unbeaten run.
But coach Manuel Marquez will be worried by the fact that four of those six games ended in draws despite Hyderabad arguably looking the better team. He believes the solution is simple his strikers need to take their chances more.
"The team needs to score (from) the chances, that is very clear. But the most important thing is to have these clear chances. I think that it's true that the team plays good football that is attractive to people," said Marquez.
"But in football, the most important thing is the final score. I agree that we were closer to win than to lose. People may say that the draw is nothing but now we have four points more than four games ago.
"Now against Chennaiyin, it's a perfect opportunity for them to have the same points as our team and for our team to put distance between both teams," Marquez added.
A welcome return to form for Aridane Santana should help solve part of their problem. The striker had four shots on target in their last game and was instrumental in the comeback against Bengaluru FC.
For Chennaiyin, the match represents an opportunity to not just close the gap, but to make amends for a really poor performance in the reverse fixture.
"It's not just a game against a team that we are three points behind. We played really bad football against Hyderabad in the last game and we have to change this," said Chennaiyin manager Csaba Laszlo.
"Professional football is always about results. Sometimes we have bad days but I don't want to see them lose without heart, without will, without spirit," he added.
Like his counterpart, Laszlo will be hoping for an improved display upfront.
Chennaiyin have struggled to score all season. Their tally for the season (11) is the lowest in the league. Their goal conversion rate of 6.01 percent is the lowest in ISL's history.
Unless those numbers improve, it is hard to see Chennaiyin's play-off push getting off the ground.
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भारतीय क्रिकेट टीम ने कप्तान विराट कोहली (Virat Kohli) के पितृत्व अवकाश पर स्वदेश लौटने और कई खिलाड़ियों के चोटिल होने के बावजूद ऑस्ट्रेलिया को उसी की सरजमीं पर चार मैचों की श्रृंखला में 2-1 से हराया। भारतीय टीम के इस साहसिक प्रदर्शन की प्रधानमंत्री मोदी ने रविवार को 'मन की बात' (Mann Ki Baat) में जिक्र किया और खिलाड़ियों की प्रशंसा की। मोदी ने अपने संबोधन में कहा, 'इस महीने, क्रिकेट पिच से भी बहुत अच्छी खबर मिली। हमारी क्रिकेट टीम ने शुरुआती दिक्कतों के बाद, शानदार वापसी करते हुए ऑस्ट्रेलिया में सीरीज जीती। हमारे खिलाड़ियों की कड़ी मेहनत और टीम वर्क प्रेरित करने वाला है।'
