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New Zealand's Finn Allen celebrates after scoring a century (100 runs) in the end of the 2026 ICC Men's T20 Cricket World Cup semi-final match between New Zealand and South Africa at the Eden Gardens
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Afghanistan's Ibrahim Zadran watches the ball after playing a shot during the T20 World Cup group stage match against Canada at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai Thursday. (AFP) Afghanistan replaced Rashid Khan with Ibrahim Zadran as skipper Thursday for the T20I series against Sri Lanka but are still monitoring the situation in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to stage the matches. Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) said Zadran’s appointment is in alignment for future build-up. “In alignment with the ACB’s long-term strategic vision and following recent changes in our team management, we have made the thoughtful decision to appoint Zadran as new T20I skipper,” ACB said in a statement. Hashmatullah Shahidi will continue to lead the team in the ODI series which follows the T20Is. The series begins with three Twenty20 internationals in Sharjah on March 13, 15 and 17 before the ODIs are played in Dubai on March 20, 22 and 25. Afghanistan crashed out in the first round of the ongoing Twenty20 World Cup in India and Sri Lanka after losing to South Africa and New Zealand. As a fall out, fast bowler Fazal Haq Farooqi, all-rounder Gulbadin Naib, and wicketkeeper-batter Mohammad Ishaq have been left out from both the squads, the release said. Afghanistan’s head coach Jonathan Trott also left the post after completing his tenure with another Englishman Richard Pybus taking over. ACB said it was constantly monitoring the situation in the UAE before making a final decision. “We are closely monitoring the ongoing situation in the region and a final decision will be made in a couple of days,” ACB said. “Should circumstances necessitate a change, the ACB will consider exploring alternative options for both the host country and the event schedule.” T20I Squad: Ibrahim Zadran (captain), Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Noor Rahman, Sediqullah Atal, Darwish Rasooli, Shahidullah Kamal, Azmatullah Omarzai, Mohammad Nabi, Sharafuddin Ashraf, Rashid Khan, Noor Ahmad, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Zia Ur Rahman Sharifi, Fareed Ahmad Malik, Abdullah Ahmadzai ODI Squad: Hashmatullah Shahidi (captain), Rahmat Shah, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Ikram Alikhil, Ibrahim Zadran, Sediqullah Atal, Darwish Rasooli, Azmatullah Omarzai, Mohammad Nabi, Rashid Khan, Nangyal Kharoti, AM Ghazanfar, Zia Ur Rahman Sharifi, Fareed Ahmad Malik, Bilal Sami Related Story
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INDIAN WELLS, CALIFORNIA - MARCH 04: Novak Djokovic of Serbia fields questions form the media during Day 1 of the BNP Paribas Open at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden on March 04, 2026 in Indian
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Real Madrid's Spanish coach Alvaro Arbeloa is pictured during the Spanish league football match between Real Madrid CF and Getafe CF at Santiago Bernabeu Stadium in Madrid on March 2, 2026. (AFP) Real Madrid will "keep fighting" as long as they mathematically have a chance of winning La Liga, after slipping four points behind Barcelona, under-pressure coach Alvaro Arbeloa said. Los Blancos visit Celta Vigo today, hoping to move back within one point of Barcelona ahead of the reigning champions' match at Athletic Bilbao on Saturday.Madrid lost their lead at the top of the table with a defeat at Osasuna a fortnight ago, before being humbled at home by Getafe last weekend to increase the scrutiny on Arbeloa. "We're four points behind, not 18. This is Real Madrid. As long as we can mathematically fight, we will, and if there ever comes a time when we can no longer fight, we will still keep fighting," said Arbeloa, who replaced Xabi Alonso as coach in January."In the dressing room, we're aware that there's still a lot of the season left. We've had two consecutive league defeats. Of course, at a club like Real Madrid, defeat is always difficult to handle because of the expectations and the pressure, but right now the only thing we're thinking about is tomorrow's match."Madrid have been hit badly by injuries in recent weeks. Brazilian winger Rodrygo Goes joined Kylian Mbappe, Jude Bellingham and Eder Militao on the sidelines after suffering a serious knee injury against Getafe which will likely see him miss the World Cup in the summer. Centre-back Dean Huijsen will also sit out the game at Celta through suspension.Real Madrid host Manchester City in their Champions League last-16 first leg next Wednesday. Mbappe has travelled to Paris for treatment on his knee injury and Bellingham is in London, with both hoping to recover in time to face City. Arbeloa said that any decisions about the players' fitness would be taken "by the medical services of Real Madrid".Real Sociedad set up Copa del Rey final against Atletico MadridReal Sociedad will face Atletico Madrid in the Copa del Rey final after a 1-0 win over Basque rivals Athletic Bilbao on Wednesday sealed a 2-0 aggregate semi-final victory. Captain Mikel Oyarzabal settled a tight contest at the Reale Arena with a spot kick in the 87th minute after referee Cesar Soto Grado reviewed the incident on the pitchside monitor.Inigo Ruiz de Galarreta was penalised for pulling Yangel Herrera's shirt at a corner and Oyarzabal fired his effort to the keeper's left as he dived the other way.La Real controlled possession for much of the match but struggled to turn their dominance into clear chances, managing four shots on target.Athletic, without injured winger Nico Williams, rarely threatened the home side until they tried to make a desperate run late in the second half as they exited the competition.The final will be played at Seville's La Cartuja stadium on April 18, when La Real and Atletico meet in the Spanish Cup showpiece for the second time. The Basque side won their previous final showdown on penalties in 1987 after a 2-2 draw following extra time. They lifted the trophy again in 2020. Harry Kane will miss Bayern Munich's Bundesliga match against Borussia Moenchengladbach today with a calf injury, coach Vincent Kompany said. The England striker, who has been an ever-present for Bayern this season, should be fit in time for the Champions League last-16 first leg at Atalanta next Tuesday.Bayern took a big step towards defending their Bundesliga title last weekend with a comeback 3-2 win at closest challengers Borussia Dortmund to open up an 11-point lead. Kane scored twice in that match to take his tally in all competitions this season to 45 goals. Related Story
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India clung on to beat England by seven runs in a thrilling T20 World Cup semi-final in Mumbai Thursday, despite Jacob Bethell’s superb 105 that put Harry Brook’s side within a whisker of pulling off a record chase. After Sanju Samson’s scintillating 89 laid the platform for India to pile up a massive 253-7, England finished agonisingly short on 246-7 after a brilliant effort masterminded by Bethell. Phil Salt (5), Brook (7) and Jos Buttler (25) fell early to leave England 64-3. But Bethell, aided by partnerships of 77 with Will Jacks (35) and 50 with Sam Curran (18), kept England in the hunt. The left-hander hit seven sixes and eight fours in his 48-ball thrash before his run out in the final over finally allowed India to celebrate in front of 35,000 jubilant fans in Mumbai’s Wankhede stadium. India will face New Zealand in Sunday’s final in Ahmedabad as they attempt to become the first team to retain the trophy and the first to win it on home soil. “It’s an unbelievable feeling, going to Ahmedabad for the final, a special feeling for the boys,” said India captain Suryakumar Yadav, who paid tribute to England. “They were always in the game, always in the chase. I was very nervous, I’m glad someone didn’t check my heart rate,” he said, before looking forward to the final. “In India, going for the title, there will be pressure, there will be nerves but the boys will be excited as well,” Suryakumar added. England captain Brook praised the way his side went about attacking a daunting target. “All of our lads should be really proud of the way we played tonight and throughout this competition,” said Brook. The hosts, having been asked to bat by Brook, earlier flayed England’s attack to all parts of the ground, hitting 19 sixes and 18 fours. Samson, who scored 97 not out in the previous match against the West Indies, signalled his intent with a four and six off Jofra Archer’s first over. But he was given a life on 15 when Brook dropped a simple chance at mid-off off Archer. It proved a costly mistake as, helped by some ill-disciplined bowling, Samson raced to his half-century off 26 balls with a huge six as Liam Dawson’s first over was pummelled for 19 runs.“I’ll hold my hands up and say that I made a big mistake there, dropping Samson,” said Brook. “As the old saying goes, catches win matches. At the end of the day, it cost us.” Ishan Kishan put on 97 from 48 balls with Samson for the second wicket before the left-hander holed out to Jacks off Adil Rashid in the 10th over to make it 117-2. Samson powered on until Jacks returned to have him caught by Salt in the deep in the 14th over at which point India were 160-3. “It feels really great,” said Samson after being named player of the match. “I kind of knew that I got some form going from the last game, so I thought I need to continue. Even 250 looked chaseable here and England played really well. All credit goes to how they batted and we really had a great semi-final.” Shivam Dube continued the onslaught with 43 off 25 balls with four sixes before being run out by Brook’s direct hit. Hardik Pandya hit 27 off 12 balls late on and Tilak Varma 21 off seven to take India past the 250 mark. Jacks was the pick of the England bowlers with 2-40 but the wayward Archer was plundered, taking 1-61 off his four overs. BRIEF SCORES: India 253 for 7 (Samson 89, Dube 43, Jacks 2-40) beat England 246 for 7 (Bethell 105, Jacks 35, Pandya 2-38) by seven runs.
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The Bahrain and Saudi Arabian Grands Prix are unlikely to be replaced on what would become a 22-race Formula One calendar if, as now looks probable, they are cancelled due to conflict in the Middle East.Multiple senior sources in the F1 paddock told Reuters that reducing the world championship from a scheduled 24 rounds was the most probable outcome. Bahrain's floodlit race at the Sakhir circuit to the south of Manama is scheduled for April 12 with the Saudi race in Jeddah due on the following weekend. MotoGP is also due to race at Qatar's Lusail circuit near Doha on April 12 and has said that date looks very difficult for them to fulfil, with the round unlikely to move to another venue. The World Endurance Championship (WEC) round in Doha on March 26-28 has been postponed.Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Bahrain's capital Manama have been targeted by Iranian missiles and drones, with a hotel hit in the latter city, after US and Israel launched attacks on Iran. Major airports in the region, significant hubs for international travellers, remain closed.Rescheduling the Formula One races for the same venues later in the year would be extremely difficult since temperatures are much higher in the region through the European summer and autumn. There is also an absence of obvious slots, with Formula One keen to maintain its August break and relieve the burden on teams.Although a number of circuits have been mooted in the media as possible replacements – Italy's Imola, France's Le Castellet and Portugal's Portimao as well as Turkey's Istanbul Park – the practical reality of shifting the circus at short notice makes it a major logistical challenge.There would also be little incentive for promoters and a limited window to sell tickets to cover the hosting fees while organising marshals, security and transport takes time. Hosting another race at Japan's Suzuka after round three, another option suggested, would raise another set of problems and track owners Honda would also have little incentive to cast a double spotlight on their own embarrassing engine woes with Aston Martin.While races were held behind closed doors at stand-in venues during the Covid-19 pandemic, with some circuits holding two in succession, there was a pressing need then to complete a season. A reduced 22-race calendar – still a long season compared to many in the past – would meet commercial obligations even if reducing Formula One's overall revenues.BAHRAIN WAS CANCELLED IN 2011 WITHOUT REPLACEMENTThe Middle Eastern races are major contributors to Formula One's bottom line but Bahrain and Saudi Arabia also have far deeper ties to the sport, the former as owners of champions McLaren and the latter as sponsors and investors. When the Bahrain Grand Prix was cancelled in 2011 due to unrest in the kingdom, it was not re-scheduled after teams objected to a late October date.'We want our role in Formula One to continue to be as positive and constructive as it has always been, therefore, in the best interest of the sport, we will not pursue the rescheduling of a race this season,' the circuit chairman, who subsequently became a government minister, said at the time.Formula One's then commercial supremo Bernie Ecclestone said later that Bahrain had paid the hosting fee anyway. Formula One's current chief executive Stefano Domenicali and Mohammed Ben Sulayem, president of the governing International Automobile Federation (FIA) have both said safety comes first.'We don't want to do any statement today because things are evolving and we still have time to make the right decision. This decision will be taken together,' Domenicali said in Melbourne. The Italian is expected to meet F1 bosses today.'It's the first get-together of all the teams. There's been very little communication about it (the situation) yet because of the effort that it took just to get here to Australia,' said McLaren boss Zak Brown. Mercedes boss Toto Wolff told reporters: 'I would very much hope we race. Is it realistic that we race there at the moment? I'm not quite sure'.While Formula One still has time before a decision has to be taken, other deadlines are fast approaching. Formula Two, a support series to Formula One, also has its first race of the season in Australia this weekend but the freight is then due to be flown to Bahrain on Monday for a test on March 25-27 at Sakhir.One senior source in the Formula Two paddock said teams were still awaiting clarification but expected both test and race to be cancelled, with an announcement possibly over the weekend. If the Bahrain F2 round, on the same weekend as Formula One, and the Saudi one are cancelled without replacement then the second race of the championship would not be until Monaco in June.
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Mikel Arteta slammed Brighton manager Fabian Hurzeler’s claim that Arsenal “make their own rules” after the Premier League leaders moved a step closer to the title with a 1-0 win at the Amex Stadium on
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Novak Djokovic said he sees no reason to retire from tennis given that he is still motivated to compete and capable of beating the best players in the world.The 38-year-old Serb defeated defending champion Jannik
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Captain Harry Brook called correctly at the coin toss and England opted to bowl first against India in their Twenty20 World Cup semifinal on Thursday.India was unchanged from its win against the West Indies on
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Iraq’s hopes of World Cup qualification are being impacted by the Iran war because players cannot secure visas for the playoff tournament in Mexico and the team's coach is stranded in the United Arab Emirates."Because
