Category: Sports

This season’s Asian Tour will launch a 10-event season called the International Series. The move is funded by Saudi Arabia and could put golf’s two major tours at risk. Former world No. 1 Greg Norman, who has been behind proposals for a breakaway super league, is fronting the project funded by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund.

The series was announced by Norman on Tuesday, just ahead of the Saudi International this week. A Centurion Club event will take place outside of London as part of the 10 events. Two more will take place in the Middle East.

According to Norman, the series will not be “geofenced,” which could mean raising the potential future event in the United States. In March, the series will begin in Thailand where the players from other tours will be allowed to compete. Bryson DeChambeau and Phil Mickelson are the two of golf’s top players chosen to play in Saudi Arabia – where appearance money is lucrative – rather than the US and European tours.

However, Rights groups have criticized Saudi Arabia for its human rights record for allowing players to appear at its events.

West Indies cricketer Jason Holder creates history by picking four wickets in four balls against England in the last over of the 5th and final T20I.

Holder produced a record-breaking performance to lead West Indies to a 17-run victory in the decider against England. He became the first West Indian male cricketer to take a hat-trick in T20Is.

Against South Africa in 2018, Anisa Mohammed became the first West Indian woman to take a hat-trick in a T20I. In 2021, Stafanie Taylor played brilliantly against Pakistan Women as well, so she has a T20I hat-trick on her resume.

Holder etched his name into the record books with his final over of the match, with England 20 runs to win, when he removed Chris Jordan, Sam Billings, Adil Rashid, and Saqib Mahmood off consecutive deliveries.

At the Kensington Oval in Bridgetown, Barbados, there was still a lot to play for after the series tied 2-2.

As the toss was won, West Indies elected to bat. Kyle Mayers and Brandon King got their team off to an excellent start. As a result, the hosts lost two quick wickets after the powerplay, reducing their scoring rate.

In the Australia Open final, Rafel Nadal won a record-breaking 21st grand slam title after beating Daniil Medvedev 2-6, 6-7, 6-4, 6-4, 7-5.

The player had earlier missed the second half of 2021 due to a foot injury and was not considered fit enough to play at the Australian Open. However, Nadal returned at the beginning of January at the Melbourne Summer Set tournament and won his first ATP title in May 2021.

Post winning the match against Matteo Berrettini in a semifinal at the Australian Open, Nadal said that he was happy to be back after being beset by injuries. In an interview post-match he said, “It has been one of the most emotional matched in my tennis career and to share the court with Medvedev was an honor. I don’t even know what to say, guys, for me it’s just amazing”.

The tennis player played his best tennis in the final and took this chance where he wouldn’t squander again and hold his nerve expertly to etch his name in the tennis history.

It was the Spaniard’s first record of more than 20 points since he shared the previous record with Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic, who was refused entry after his visa was revoked.

On Saturday, Barty, the first Australian woman recovered from 5-1 down in the second set to beat Danielle Collins 6-3, 7-2 (2) in the final ending a 44-year drought from Australian women at their home Grand Slam tournament.

Since Wendy Turnbull in 1980, Barty is the first homegrown player to reach the final. The 25-year-old Australian has made a remarkable comeback after taking time off, she missed every Grand Slam event for two years in 2015 and 2016, and thought of a cricketing career after losing in the first round at three majors in 2014.

Barty said, “This is just a dream come true for me. I am just so proud to be an Aussie”. She further thanked her coach and support team saying that she feels extremely fortunate and lucky to have so much love in her life. Now, Barty has won a Grand Slam singles title on three surfaces: grass at Wimbledon last year, clay at this year’s French Open, and hard court at Melbourne Park. In addition to Serena Williams, she is the only active women’s tennis player who has won majors on all three surfaces.

On Wednesday, Indian tennis star Sania Mirza announces her retirement and will hang up her racquet at the end of the 2022 season.

Winner of six Grand Slam titles, three mixed double trophies makes the announcement after losing the Australian Open women’s double first round with partner Nadiia Kichenok. The duo lost the match to Slovenia’s Tamara Zadansek and Kaja Juvan.

In a press conference, post-match Sania Mirza said, “There’s a bunch of reason for it. I do feel my recovery is taking longer and considering he is three years old, I do feel I am putting him at risk by traveling so much with him. Unfortunately, the pandemic is making is take certain decisions for the well-being of ourselves and our family. My knee was hurting today and I’m not saying that’s the reason we lost but I do think that it is taking time to recover as I am getting older”. She further added that her body is “wearing down”.

The 35-year-old will retire as India’s most accomplished woman tennis player. The former world number one in doubles who teamed up with Swiss legend Martina Hingis said a few factors influenced her decision.

On Monday, Serbian tennis player Novak could be barred from playing in the French Open as there would be no exemption from France’s new vaccine pass law.

Djokovic chases his record-breaking 21st Grand Slam title, some tournaments are considering exempting him or reducing the number of exemptions for travelers who aren’t immunized against COVID-19. Novak was forced to leave Australia before the year’s first Grand Slam tournament after losing a court case to reverse the visa cancellation.

The new French vaccine pass approved by the parliament will require people to have a certificate of vaccination to enter all the public places including cafes, restaurants, long-distance trains, cinemas.

The ministry said, “The rule is simple. The vaccine pass will be imposed, as soon as the law is promulgated, in establishments that were already subject to the health pass. This will apply to everyone who is a spectator or a professional sportsperson, and this until further notice.

Djokovic was barred from bidding to win a record 21st Grand Slam title at the Australian Open. earlier he had refused to get vaccinated and was criticized for making public appearances and attending events last month after testing positive for the coronavirus.

On Sunday, at the IG stadium, Lakshya Sen beat Singapore Loh Kean Yew to claim India Open Super 500 title, tempting instinct to match the world champion’s showboating.

A pair of men in their early 20s, both of whom possess exuberant attack capabilities, could have come to a point when the Almora man’s life was at risk as they got into a race to see who hit harder and faster. However, Sen showed maturity and control, putting to shade the just-crowned world champion. Having won the world championships bronze medal, Sen became the first opponent to defeat Kean Yew on the circuit, with a 24-22, 21-17 victory.

Rankireddy and Shetty’s victory against Hendra Setiawan and Mohamad Ahsan, who had won three world championships earlier in the day, was proof that the age of the well-seasoned Indian men’s badminton players, who are not a one-off like Prakash Padukone and P Gopichand, is here.

Sen said, “It feels nice to win. In the end I was a little anxious to win. But I am happy I pulled off the win”. Sen was under pressure at the end of both the semifinals and the finals. Having the confidence and momentum to hold his own under pressure makes Sen the most anticipated player of 2022 in Indian badminton.

On Sunday, Serbian tennis player Novak Djokovic was adjourned by the Australian federal court. The visa case will be considered for its verdict after hearing arguments from lawyers representing him and the federal immigration minister.

Chief Justice James Allsop told the court, “ We would hope to be in a position to identify to the parties later in the afternoon what the course is that we propose”. During the past 10 days, the tennis star has been detained by immigration authorities, released, and then detained again as he prepares for a tournament starting on Monday.

On Sunday morning the immigration officials escorted the player to his lawyer’s office to attend the virtual court hearing. He earlier spent the Saturday night in an immigration detention hotel. Acting for Djokovic, Nick Wood pointed out how the player played in the Australian Open and several other major tournaments last year without provoking any protests or unrest. However, Stephen Lloyd said that Djokovic’s opposition to vaccination can be seen not only in his public statement but also he has not yet been vaccinated against the COVID-19 after it become widely available even for the common people.

On Wednesday, the young shuttler from Gujrat, Tasnim Mir becomes the first Indian to grab the world’s number 1 position in the under-19 girls singles in the latest BWF junior rankings.

The 16-year-old has secured titles in three junior international tournaments to jump three places and was rewarded for last year’s stellar run. She grabbed the top position in the junior world ranking. 

Tasnim said, “I can’t say that I expected this. I thought I will not be able to become number 1 as tournaments were getting affected by COVID-19 but I won three events in Bulgaria, France, and Belgium. So, I am really excited and happy that finally, I could become world No 1. It is a great moment for me.

She further added that she will completely focus on her senior circuit from now on and is looking forward to her tournament in Iran and Uganda next month. She plans to be in the top 200 by the end of the year with her good performance.

Tasnim is currently ranked a lowly 602 in the women’s singles supported by OGQ. It has never been accomplished by any Indian woman, including two-time Olympic medalist P V Sindhu and silver medalist Saina Nehwal.

World number one Tennis player Novak Djokovic arrived at the Australian airport to defend his Australian Open crown in the 21st Grand Slam title but was stopped by border officials on arrival and denied entry to the country. Djokovic is currently fighting deportation from Australia as the Australian government revoked his visa because he failed to meet its Covid-19 protocols that have made double vaccination a necessary requirement.

Although he claimed on his Instagram account a few days back that he has been exempted to play in the tournament which starts on the 17th of January and can attend it without being vaccinated. He has openly said that he is an anti-vexer and has not revealed any information related to his vaccination status yet.

Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison said that Djokovic is facing deportation because he hasn’t provided the officials with his vaccination status or an adequate medical exemption. Morrison further said that “Rules are rules and there are no special cases”.

However, Djokovic’s lawyers are working hard to avoid the cancellation of his visa and are arguing in court to prevent his deportation.