Most successful teams in Asia Cup history. Take a look!

Rohit Sharma will captain the Indian cricket team in this year’s Asia Cup. The game will be played in the United Arab Emirates from 27 August to 11 September. We take a look at the most successful teams in Asia Cup history.

Originally published at Pen 18

audi: Audi enters Formula One

Volkswagen’s premium brand Audi is entering Formula One for motor racing, the carmaker said on Friday.

Audi will compete in the Formula One World Championship from 2026 with a specially developed power unit, the carmaker said, adding that which team it will line up with in 2026 will be announced before the end of this year. .

A key part of Audi’s decision to join Formula One is the racing series’s goal to become carbon-neutral by 2030, the carmaker said, which includes new technical regulations focused on more electrification and sustainable fuels to come into effect from 2026.

Originally published at Pen 18

Match: India-Pakistan match: Restaurants, lounges promise great viewing for cricket fans in UAE

Hotels and restaurants in Dubai and Sharjah have offered a lifeline to die-hard Indian and Pakistani cricket fans – who could not lay their hands on tickets to the blockbuster clash between the arch-rivals on August 28, leaving them ‘mouth-watering’. ‘ found. Makes a deal to liven up their evening.

Thousands of fans logged into their computers and mobile phones for hours to buy tickets online for the clash, but few were lucky enough to get seats. However, hotels and restaurants have come up with proposals to make the match equally enjoyable, offering delectable thali so that family and friends can come together for an evening of fun, food and music.

Adeeb Ahmed, owner of ‘King-House of Mughlai Food’ in Sharjah, says he has installed two big screens in his restaurant for Sunday’s big clash.

“We are constantly receiving inquiries and bookings from individuals and groups to watch the match at the restaurant. On match day, we want to see the love and brotherhood flowing between the supporters of both the countries. There is no better way to enjoy the evening Instead of watching matches with dishes from the subcontinent,” IANS quoted Ahmed as saying.

“Our thali will have a mix of Pakistani with Indian food like Pakistani Kheer with Lucknowi Kavaband and Malabar Parathas with Peshawari Chicken. Since both Indian and Pakistani fans are booking seats at our restaurant, we want them to enjoy good food. Enjoy the match together and an atmosphere of camaraderie. We have also arranged for popular music in both the countries.”

The ‘High Note Pool and Sky Lounge’ in Dubai has arranged to showcase the ‘greatest cricket rivalry’ on a giant screen. Evening drinks, good food and dancing are arranged in the lounge to go with the match.

Hari Camel, CEO of High Note, explains: “We have had to increase bookings due to the high numbers. Now, there are only a few seats left for fans.”

The Music Lounge has arranged Indian and Pakistani music during the match, where people can cheer on their respective teams with country music playing in the background.

Indian team supporter Faizan Khan told IANS that he would watch the match at a sports bar along with his office colleagues as it was impossible for all of them to book tickets online.

“Our office group would watch the match together. It was very difficult for all of them to get tickets online. We then decided to watch the match at a sports bar,” he said.

Indian-origin fan Om Sharma said that he tried hard to get tickets for the match, but “luck did not favor him”. “Now, I will go with my family to some restaurant where we can enjoy a match together.”

(with inputs from IANS)

Originally published at Pen 18

mohammad wasim: Asia Cup: Injury scare for Pakistan as pacer Mohammad Wasim suffers back pain in training

Pakistan suffered another injury after fast bowler Shaheen Afridi was ruled out of the Asia Cup, with pacer Mohammad Wasim ruled out of practice with back pain ahead of their opener against India. The 21-year-old was sent for an MRI scan to ascertain the severity of the injury after he complained of lower back pain during a net session at the ICC Academy here on Thursday.

According to a report in ‘ESPN Cricinfo’, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) did not want to “risk a possible long-term injury” and therefore sent the pacer for a precautionary scan.

The youngster has played eight ODIs and 11 T20 Internationals since making his international debut in July last year.

The team management is hopeful that the injury is not serious and Wasim can recover in time for the tournament as Pakistan are already without the services of their main bowler Shaheen due to a knee ligament injury in July.

The two-time champions face arch-rivals India in their opening match of the tournament on Sunday.

Originally published at Pen 18

Badminton World Championship: Indian Men's Doubles pair ensure a medal finish as they storm into the semi-finals

Originally published at Pen 18

India’s first men’s doubles medal: Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty claim India’s first men’s doubles medal at World Championships

Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty created history by becoming the first Indian pair to win a medal in the men’s doubles event at the World Championships by defeating world number two Takuro Hoki and Yugo Kobayashi of Japan in the quarter-finals here on Friday.

The world No. 7 Indian pair, who won gold at the Commonwealth Games earlier this month, defeated local favorites and defending champions 24-22 15-21 21-14 in one hour and 15 minutes to clinch their maiden medal at the prestigious tournament. ,

This was India’s second World Championships medal in doubles event with Jwala Gutta and Ashwini Ponnappa winning bronze in women’s doubles in 2011.

After ensuring at least a bronze medal, Satwik and Chirag will now face sixth-seeded Malaysian pair of Aaron Chia and Soh Wui Yik in the semi-finals.

Earlier, MR Arjun and Dhruv Kapila’s good run came to an end when the Indian pair lost to three-time gold medalists Mohammad Ahsan and Hendra Setiawan in another men’s doubles quarterfinal.

The unseeded Indian pair, who had some sensational victories this week, went down 8-21, 14-21 to third seeded Indonesian pair in less than 30 minutes.

The Indians had earlier defeated eighth seeds Kim Astrup and Anders Skarup Rasmussen of Denmark in the second round.

Satwik and Chirag dominated the opening round to set up a 12-5 lead in the first game, but the Japanese pair held on to a 16-14 advantage with seven consecutive points.

However, the Indian pair was up for the job as they struggled tooth and nail to ensure an advantage after the opening game.

Takuro and Yugo came back strongly in the second game after a hard-fought 9-9 split.

With the match hanging in the balance, the Indian pair once again tightened their grip and attacked at intervals to take an 11-5 lead.

Satwik and Chirag then extended the lead to 14-8 when the Indians were called for a mistake touching the net during the return. Both lost the point but were soon able to put it back, leading 16-9.

Yugo made some sensational shots, including a powerful smash and a cross court return, to keep the Japanese pair’s chances alive with three points.

Two shots wide from the Japanese pair took India a few points away from their 19-13 win.

The Indians then pulled off another spectacular comeback to score seven match points, which their opponents failed to negotiate.

A bit nervous, Satwik stumbles after his serve, but Yugo sends the shuttle over the net as Chirag stops crying in celebration.

Originally published at Pen 18

williams: Serena Williams prepares to retire as US Open ends Slam year

thanks for doing
Serena WilliamsThis
US Open Won’t be like anyone else.

whether it really proves to be his last event or not
Long, Story and Impressive Sports Career – And in professional tennis, perhaps more than in any other sport, goodbyes sometimes meet again – two weeks
Hard-court tournament starting Monday at Flushing Meadows And the conclusion of the 2022 Grand Slam calendar will, first and foremost, be about
Williams,

As long as she stays in the field, at least.

That’s fitting, because the past two decades and then some tennis, in general, and the US Open, in particular, have been about Williams, who turns 41 next month. He has unmistakable skill with racket in hand and indomitable drive to be the best that has led to
23 major singles championships1 ranking and Olympic gold medal, and that outstanding, noticeable quality that
made her a celebrity Like a superstar athlete.

“In my view, he revolutionized tennis,” said Chris Evert, who won 18 Majors in the 1970s and 1980s. “She revolutionized power in sports. And I feel like she’s really inspired women of color, because we’ve seen a lot more women of color playing sports. And I think she’s done women’s competition. It’s okay to be brutal and passionate and outspoken, to be passionate on the court, and still be a woman.”

The way Williams – and, of course, her older sister, 42-year-old Venus, owner of seven Slam singles titles and Serena’s partner to 14 major doubles trophies – has changed the game and many are, and expand. Along the way his fast serve and swiftly moving groundstrokes inspired, or even forced, other players to either try to match that style or figure out how to counter it. How to try

“They both had something in them,” said Rick Mackie, a tennis coach who worked with the Williams siblings in the early 1990s. “When we competed or did competitive practice, I saw something I’d never seen before. He tried so hard to get a ball, he almost fell. Now you can push harder; it doesn’t mean That you’re going to be the world champion. But it was just another level.”

Williams has said she doesn’t know how to define her legacy, but it is around, whether embodied by players who credit her with being an inspiration, such as French Open runner-up Coco Gough, or in the rules. Clearly the change is, or at least likely is, a product of episodes involving him.

An example: a line could be drawn from the US Tennis Association’s decision to allow in-match coaching for women and men in a Grand Slam tournament for the first time since the chaotic final of the 2018 US Open this year, in which Williams ended Naomi docked a game after receiving a warning from her then-coach Patrick Mouratoglu about receiving instructions while losing to Osaka.

Another example: the prevalence of electronic line-calling, to the point that there are no longer line judges in US Open matches, can be traced back to the quarterfinal match at Flushing Meadows in 2004 in which Williams lost several wrong decisions. Jennifer Capriati.

At the US Open alone, there were other run-ins with officials (who can forget a foot-fault broah in the 2009 semi-final against Kim Clijsters), great fashion choices (a catsuit in 2002; knee-high boots two years later). ) and lots of victories, dating back to 1999, when 17-year-old Williams defeated Martina Hingis for her opening Grand Slam trophy.

So Arthur Ashe Stadium would provide a fitting backdrop for the farewell, although Williams did not explicitly state that she would never compete again after the US Open, telling the world through an essay in Vogue that she Was ready to start “grow away from”. tennis” to have a second child and focus on pursuing her professional interests.

Every time she steps on the court in New York she will be treated as if it were her last. It will start with a first-round match against 27-year-old Danka Kovinic of Montenegro, who is ranked 80th and has never been past the third round in a major tournament.

It will be only the fifth singles match for Williams in the past 12 months, as the American was out of action at Wimbledon last year with a first-round injury until his first round loss this year. Since returning from that hiatus, Williams is 1-3, including straight sets defeats against Tokyo Olympic gold medalist Belinda Bencic and 2021 US Open champion Emma Radukanu, her two most recent appearances.

There was a time – not long ago, in the scheme of things – that Williams was considered the favorite in every match and in every tournament, especially in the four events that matter most in the sport.

“I say: don’t underestimate him,” said ESPN analyst Evert. “But the problem is the area. The problem is that everyone is getting better too. … There are a lot of good players out there who, No. 1, aren’t afraid of him; and No. 2, know he’s at his best at the moment. No, and No. 3, wants to beat him.”

Two days before losing to Bencic in Toronto, and one day before revealing her thoughts about retirement (a word she said she disliked), Williams said in a news conference: “I’ve always wanted to do it. can’t for.”

It’s true, of course. However, no one expects that this will be the last time the world hears of him, even if there are actually no matches left to play.

“At the end of the day, his biggest stage was tennis,” said Williams coach Mackie years ago, “but I think his biggest work is yet to come.”

Originally published at Pen 18