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Lakshya Sen and the women’s doubles pair of Ashwini Ponnappa and Tanisha Crasto made it to the pre-quarterfinals of the All England BWF Super-1000 tournament. Hockey India President Dilip Tirkey said that the women's national team needs a fresh core squad.
Read below to learn more about the latest sporting events in the last 24 hours.
Badminton
Lakshya Sen, Ashwini Ponnappa-Tanisha Crasto reach All-England BWF Super-1000 Pre Quarters
Lakshya Sen and the women’s doubles pair of Ashwini Ponnappa and Tanisha Crasto made it to the pre-quarterfinals of the All England BWF Super-1000 tournament. Lakshya defeated Magnus Johannesen of Denmark 21-14, 21-14, and the duo of Ashwini-Tanisha took down Yeung Nga Ting and Yeung Pui Lam of Hong Kong 21-13, 21-18 in Birmingham. Lakshya is India’s lone contender in men’s singles after HS Prannoy, K Srikanth, and Priyanshu Rajawat.
Hockey
Women’s Nationals advanced to find fresh faces: Hockey India President Dilip Tirkey
Hockey India President Dilip Tirkey said the women's national team needs a fresh core squad. Tirkey’s statement came after the senior women’s national hockey team failed to qualify for the Paris Olympics 2024. Tirkey told TOI, "This edition is crucial for Indian hockey. The Nationals are usually conducted in September-October, but given the circumstances, we decided to advance it. Many Indian players are either injured or retired, so we need to put together a fresh core team and move forward. Hockey India did not want to wait for another six months to do that.”
Tennis
Holger Rune advances to Indian Wells to lock horns with Daniil Medvedev
Holger Rune advanced past former champion Taylor Fritz 2-6, 7-6(2), 6-3 on Wednesday to reach the Indian Wells quarterfinals to clash against Daniil Medvedev. After the match, Rune said, “It was crazy. I really just stayed in the moment and kept fighting, trying to play better point to point and I managed to raise my level quite amazingly at the end of the second set, which meant everything for the match.” He added, “He was controlling it in the first set and for a long time in the second as well, so I’m just happy I could keep fighting. I kept believing I was going to find my rhythm at some point. It was on the edge but I managed to find it, which was nice.”
Emma Navarro defeats Aryna Sabalenka to reach Indian Wells QF, Coco Gauff qualifies
American tennis star Emma Navarro moved past Australian Champion Aryna Sabalenka to reach the Indian Wells ATP-WTA Masters quarterfinals. The 23-ranked Navarro registered her career’s first win over a top-five player with the scoreline of 6-3, 3-6, 6-2. On the other hand, US Open champion Coco Gauff bid adieu to her teenage years by defeating Belgian Elise Mertens 6-0, 6-2. Speaking of men’s clashes, Daniil Medvedev defeated Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov 6-4, 6-4.
Coco Gauff reveals life goals, prioritises tennis over marriage and having kids
The US Open champion revealed her life goals and said that she has prioritised tennis over everything, including getting married and having kids. The 20-year-old said, "I guess tennis goals, definitely to win some more slams, and I want to medal at this Olympics or 2028. That would be cool. Then life goals, honestly, I haven't thought that far. Yeah, I mean, I'm not trying to do anything, I'm not trying to get married or anything. She added, “Definitely no kids. Yeah, just tennis right now, and we'll see where life takes me off the court.”
Football
Borussia Dortmund advances to Champions League quarter-finals with win over PSV
Borussia Dortmund secured their berth in the Champions League quarter-finals with a 2-0 win over PSV on Wednesday. Jadon Sancho’s early goal and Marco Reus’ late strike proved significant in a tense encounter. Sancho didn’t leave the opportunity and netted a third-minute goal with a low shot, which marked his first Champions League goal since November 2021. Dortmund goalkeeper Gregor Kobel said after the win, “We didn’t let them breathe in the first 30 minutes. I am now looking forward to facing a very big opponent in the next round.”
Ivory Coast footballer alleges being racially abused in Kerala
An Ivory Coast footballer has alleged that he was being subjected to racial abuse and racial slurs in Kerala’s Malappuram district. Dairrassouba Hassane Junior registered a complaint with local police and said, “Our team got a corner kick when my team was leading by a goal. I went near the corner flag for taking the kick, and the natives and the audience called me a monkey. One among the audience threw a stone at me and it hit my head. When I turned back, two more stones were hurled at me and they started screaming at me. Those people who threw stones at me were saying f**k African monkey, black cat.”
Mohun Bagan defeat Kerala Blasters in high-octane Indian Super League clash
Home side Kerala Blasters went down to Mohun Bagan Super Giants 3-4 in their last Indian Super League clash. Of the seven goals in the game, six came in the second half. While Armando Sadiku scored two goals, in the fourth and 60th minute of the game, Deepak Tangri (68) and Jason Cummins (90+7) scored a goal each for Kolkata. On the other hand, the Blasters’ goals came from skipper Dimitrios Diamantakos (63rd and 90+9 minutes) as well as Vibin Mohanan (54).
If you have the right balance between attack and defence: Mohun Bagan coach Antonio Habas
Mohun Bagan Super Giants head coach Antonio Habas expressed his delight after the side defeated Kerala Blasters FC in their ISL clash on Wednesday. This was Mohun Bagan’s 12th win of the season at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Kochi. Habas revealed the mantra behind winning the matches and said, “It depends on the players you have. One intelligent coach can choose the way the team wants to play, one way or another. If you have the right balance between attack and defence, maybe you (can) have success. It’s not a magic idea: today we need to play attacking or today we need to play defensive. No. It depends on the players you have.”
Major Football Results
Champions League R16
Atletico Madrid 2-1 (5-4) Inter
Dortmund 2-0 (3-1) PSV Eindhoven
England Premier League
Bournemouth 4-3 Luton
AFC Cup QF
Odisha FC 0-0 Central Coast