Nagaland gets its first Astroturf football ground
Kohima: With an objective to improve infrastructure for football and nurture players with good facilities, Nagaland Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio inaugurated the state’s first Astroturf football ground at the Indira Gandhi Stadium. The project is conceived with a view to providing a standard football field that could host national and international matches, besides nurturing and training budding players. The day coincided with the 101st birth anniversary of legendary footballer Dr T Ao, who was the first captain of independent India’s Olympic football team at the London Olympics in 1948. The foundation stone at the stadium was laid by the then Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi on October 6 in 1987, and inaugurated by former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee on October 28 in 2003. The center has been working on a quality strategic sports infrastructure development plan for every district by engaging and partnering with proven sports consultants. To give a better opportunity to young budding footballers, the Chief Minister said that the center is partnering with the Bhaichung Bhutia Football School (BBFS). (ANI)
Fed Cup: Ankita wins twice
Astana: India staved off an unexpected scare from lower-ranked Thailand as Ankita Raina won her both singles and doubles matches to lead the side to a 2-1 win in their Fed Cup opener, here Thursday. Taking the court first, Karman Kaur Thandi, ranked 211, suffered a shock 2-6 6-3 3-6 defeat to Nudinda Luangnam, who is ranked as low as 712 in the world. The onus to bring the team back then rested on country’s number one singles player Ankita, who lost the first but regrouped to secure a 6-7 (3) 6-2 6-4 win over Peangtarn Plipuech in the second singles. With scores 1-1, the doubles became the decisive rubber and captain Vishal Uppal fielded both the singles players. (PTI)
FIFA ranks: India out of 100
New Delhi: The Indian football team Thursday slipped out of the top 100 in the latest FIFA rankings following their back to back group league defeats during the AFC Asian Cup in the UAE. Skipper Sunil Chhetri and Co. slumped six places to be ranked 103 with 1219 points in the FIFA rankings released Thursday. India also dropped out of the top 16 in the AFC rankings, plummeting to 18th. India had crashed out of the Asian Cup after losing to UAE and Bahrain, despite thrashing Thailand 4-1 in their opening group to make a good start to their campaign. Following India’s exit, Stephen Constantine stepped down from his role as India chief coach. The country will now need to play friendlies in March against higher-ranked countries to improve its ranking ahead of the draw of the second round of 2022 FIFA World Cup Qualifiers, which is likely to be held in April. India had regained its place in the top-100 in March last year, after breaking the top 100 bracket for the first time in 21 years in 2017. India best ranking is the 94th place attained in February 1996. (PTI)
Oz bowling coach resigns
Sydney: Australia’s bowling coach David Saker quit Thursday just months out from the World Cup and an Ashes tour to England “for the best interests of the team”. Saker, who performed a similar role with England before joining the Australian set-up in 2016, resigned after lengthy talks with coach Justin Langer. Cricket Australia said Troy Cooley will oversee the bowling group for Australia’s upcoming one-day series against India and Pakistan, with discussions about the coaching structure for the World Cup and Ashes ongoing. Cooley has previously worked as an England bowling coach and is seen as instrumental in helping players such as Andrew Flintoff and James Anderson. (AFP)