Axar Patel in top-10 of ICC ODI rankings for all-rounders
DUBAI, July 15: Indian all-rounder Axar Patel entered the top-10 of the ICC ODI rankings for all-rounders, rising three positions to ninth in the latest list after his brilliant performance in the opening game against England in Birmingham.Axar grabbed four wickets and scored a 52-ball 57 to be a key contributor to India’s six-wicket win on Tuesday.As a result, the spin bowling all-rounder also gained 18 spots in the batting rankings to sit at 73, and rose up two spots in the bowling charts to be 42nd.The Indian team was boosted by the return of Shubman Gill, Jasprit Bumrah, Rohit Sharma, and Virat Kohli in the ODI format after losing the T20 series 0-4.Before he retired hurt at 80 off 75 balls, Gill smacked 11 fours and a six to set India well on track for their chase of 259 against England.The performance meant an increase in 12 rating points for Gill, and the batter is now merely 11 points away from Daryl Mitchell, who holds the top spot in the ODI batting rankings.Bumrah’s stellar return, in which he picked up one wicket, added a sting to India’s bowling and saw him back at 24th spot in the bowling rankings.Washington Sundar (52not out) was another notable performer and he gained 24 spots in the batting rankings (177th position) and 16 spots in the all-rounder rankings (55th spot).England’s batting genius Joe Root was also among runs, and reached an equal 12th spot in the Men’s ODI Batting Rankings following a 76 off 76 balls.Similarly, Liam Dawson’s feisty 68 also earned him a promotion by 81 spots. He sits at the 262nd spot in the Batting Rankings. (PTI)
Mason Greenwood makes move to Fenerbahce from Marseille
ISTANBUL, July 15: Former England forward Mason Greenwood signed for Fenerbahce to join his third club in three years since being banished from the Manchester United team.Fenerbahce said in a statement late Tuesday it will pay Marseille 39 million euros ($44.5 million) and gave the 24-year-old Greenwood a four-year contract.“It was a no-brainer when they (were) interested in me,” said Greenwood, who had been pursued by Atletico Madrid, in a video message posted by his new club. “It’s the biggest club in Turkey and I can’t wait to get started.” Fenerbahce has not won the Turkish league since 2014, while fierce city rival Galatasaray has captured seven titles in that time including the last four.As runner-up last season, Fenerbahce starts its Champions League campaign next week in the second qualifying round, hosting Gornik Zabrze in the first leg.Greenwood spent two years at Marseille after a season on loan in Spain with Getafe since being frozen out at Manchester United where he had been a top prospect.Manchester United suspended Greenwood in 2022 after he was implicated in assaulting a young woman after images and videos were posted online. He was charged with attempted rape, controlling and coercive behavior before the case was dropped.Greenwood returned to form in his first season at Marseille who finished runner-up in Ligue 1. His 21 league goals in that season was joint best with Ousmane Dembele of Paris Saint-Germain. (PTI)
Ridhima takes lead in 10th Leg of Women’s Pro Golf Tour
KOLAR, July 15: Ridhima Dilawari, who won three of the first six events this season, fired a bogey free four-under 68 to lead by one over three players after the first round of the tenth leg of the Hero Women’s Pro Golf Tour here on Wednesday.Ridhima, who was T-8 and T-9 in the last two legs, led by one over last week’s winner Vani Kapoor, the experienced Amandeep Drall and Vidhatri Urs, who is looking to recover her form and rhythm.The trio shot three-under 69 and were chasing Ridhima hard.Saanvi Somu, who has been knocking on the doors of her first win on the Hero Women’s Pro Golf Tour, first as an amateur and now as a pro, was all alone in the fifth place with 1-under 71.Ananya Datar and Kashika Misra carded even par 72 each to be tied for the sixth place, even as Mannat Brar and Riya Jadon shared the eighth place with 1-over 73 each. A big bunch of six players Prakruthi Sastry, Jasmine Shekar, Shagun Narain, Neha Tripathi and amateurs Ananthi Vivek and Ananyaa Sood shared the 10th place after carding two-over 74 each. Among the big names further behind were Tvesa Malik (75) in Tied-16th alongside young Lavanya Jadon. (PTI)
