Pakistan to host Proteas for 2 Tests, white-ball series in October
LAHORE, Sep 6: Pakistan will host South Africa in two Tests, to be played in October, marking the start of their World Test Championship (WTC) cycle. The two-Test series in Pakistan will mark the Proteas’ first red-ball tour of the country in nearly four years. The opening Test between Pakistan and South Africa, the current WTC mace holders, will be staged at Lahore’s Gaddafi Stadium from October 12-16, the first five-day fixture to be played at the venue since its renovation ahead of the 2025 ICC Champions Trophy.The second Test is scheduled to be played at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium from October 20 to 24.“We are looking forward to welcoming South Africa for the opening series of our ICC World Test Championship 2025-27 campaign. Starting the new cycle against the current Test champions will provide quality cricket for our players and fans,” said a PCB official.South Africa last toured Pakistan for Tests in January 2021, when they were beaten 2-0. Following the Test series, South Africa and Pakistan will meet in three T20Is to be held from October 28 to November 1, with the first game in Rawalpindi and the remaining two matches in Lahore.The tour will conclude with three ODIs to be played at Faisalabad’s Iqbal Stadium from November 4-8. The ground will host an ODI game after 17 years.(IANS)
Nafees, Rudra clinch U-19 titles at Indian Junior Open Squash
JAIPUR, Sep 6: Yusha Nafees and Rudra Singh clinched the boys’ and girls’ under-19 titles respectively at the Indian Junior Open Squash Championships here on Saturday.Nafees, who was part of India’s bronze medal-winning squad at the Asian Junior Team Championships earlier this year, rallied to defeat Rachit Shah in a five-game thriller to secure the top prize at the Rajasthan Squash Academy.In the girls’ U-19 final, Rudra got the better of Vyomika Khandelwal in straight games.The week-long tournament, which drew 520 entries across 12 events, concluded with finals in all age categories. (PTI)
Results (all finals):
Boys U-19: Yusha Nafees (5/8) bt Rachit Shah (5/8) 8-11, 5-11, 11-8, 11-5, 11-2.Girls U-19: Rudra Singh (5/8) bt Vyomika Khandelwal (5/8) 11-7, 13-11, 11-2.Boys U-17: Subhash Choudhary (1) bt Raghav Vashishtha (5/8) 11-8, 11-4, 10-12, 11-2.Girls U-17: Sehar Nayar (3/4) bt Saanvi Kalanki (3/4) 12-10, 11-1, 11-6.Boys U-15: Shreyansh Jha (1) bt Harshal Rana (2) 14-12, 11-5, 11-8.Girls U-15: Aadya Budhia (5/8) bt Vasundhara Nangare (1) 12-10, 11-7, 10-12, 11-7.Boys U-13: Shayan Samtani (1) bt Abhyuday Arora (2) 11-5, 11-2, 12-10.Girls U-13: Shanaya Parasrampuria (5/8) bt Nandikasree Kalaivanan (5/8) 11-7, 11-7, 11-6.Boys U-11: K Haribala (3/4) bt Tilakvir Kapoor (1) 11-9, 12-10, 8-11, 6-11, 11-9.Girls U-11: Alia Kankaria (2) bt Keerti Pradha Junivar Bala (1) 10-12, 11-8, 11-9, 16-14.Boys U-9: Amaay Mahajan bt Darsh Mehrotra 13-11, 11-6, 11-6.Girls U-9: K Tulasi Mira bt Lakshanya Rajawat 12-10, 11-6, 11-4.
Focus on Manush, Payas as UTT Ranking event returns to Delhi
NEW DELHI, Sep 6: The spotlight will be on defending champion Manush Shah and local favourite Payas Jain when the second UTT National Ranking Table Tennis Championships return to the capital after 13 years on Sunday.The absence of top paddlers Manav Thakkar, G Sathiyan and Sreeja Akula has not dimmed the scale of the competition, which has drawn close to 3,000 entries across 12 categories – surpassing the 2,587 entries at the season opener in Vadodara.The championships will open with the men’s and women’s singles, where Shah (RBI) and Anusha Kutumbale (Railways) — winners in Vododara — will look to extend their winning form.Manav, India’s only men’s player in the world top-50, and Sathiyan are recovering from injuries ahead of the Asian Championships in Bhubaneswar next month, while Sreeja, the lone Indian woman in the top-50, has opted out to focus on the continental event.Their absence opens up the field for emerging talents to make a mark.Manush will face tough tests from Jain, who will enjoy home support. He had reached the semifinals at Vadodara. Then there are Sudhanshu Grover and Yashansh Malik, who have the wherewithal to beat the best in business on a given day.Among women, Anusha will face strong competition from Diya Chitale, runner-up Swastika Ghosh, Yashaswini Ghorpade and Taneesha Kotecha.Harmeet Desai, SFR Snehit and Akash Pal also add depth to the men’s draw, while a new crop of Under-19 talent — Ankur Bhattacharjee, Divyansh Srivastava, P.B. Abhinand and Syndrela Das will aim to make an impression.The junior sections (U-17, U-15, U-13, U-11) will once again showcase the sport’s grassroots strength. (PTI)
