Former champion Lakshya Sen produced a composed and tactical performance to advance to the quarterfinals of the $950,000 India Open Super 750 badminton tournament but Kidambi Srikanth and HS Prannoy bowed out after a spirited show, in New Delhi, on Thursday.
Max Verstappen says he is considering F1 retirement after a frustrating start to the season, saying all options are open despite his Red Bull contract till 2028.
'Doesn't matter what the head-to-head looks like. It's always a new match, always a new battle.'
Despite falling short in the Badminton Asia Championships final, coach Sagar Chopda believes Ayush Shetty possesses the potential to become a top-five player in the world, highlighting the need for patience and continued development.
'We were in a heavily nuclearised environment. China had tested for Pakistan in the 1980s and helped their missile programme stay just one step behind us.'
Indian boxer Preeti Pawar advances to the final of the Asian Boxing Championships, while Nikhat Zareen and Lovlina Borgohain are eliminated in the semi-finals.
The cost of the war is being counted not in the corridors of power in Washington or Tehran, but in Firozabad's darkened furnace rooms, Howrah's idle casting sheds, and a barbershop in Kochi where the wait is suddenly, inexplicably, an hour long, notes Prem Panicker in his must read blog on the Iran War.
The 'rescue' operation occurred within kilometres of Iran's underground tunnel complex at Isfahan, assessed by the IAEA and US intelligence as holding a substantial portion of the country's 60 per cent enriched uranium stockpile. Retired senior US military officers have highlighted that the mission's footprint -- hundreds of special operators, multiple heavy-lift aircraft deep inside Iran -- appears outsized for recovering a single airman. Prem Panicker continues his must read blog on the Iran War.
Chinese Taipei's Lin Chun-Yi claimed his maiden Super 750 title in men's singles, while World No. 1 An Se Young of South Korea underlined her supremacy by securing the women's singles crown at the $950,000 India Open, in New Delhi, on Sunday.
The delegations from the US and Iran head to Islamabad on Friday, carrying a ceasefire that is already fraying, a Strait that is technically open and practically closed, and a negotiating agenda that would challenge even parties actually negotiating in good faith, which these groups are not. Prem Panicker continues his must read blog on the Iran War.
Indian Grandmaster R Praggnanandhaa defeated Anish Giri in the first round of the Candidates chess tournament. Other notable results included Javokhir Sindarov's win and draws in the women's section featuring Divya Deshmukh and R Vaishali.
'It's a changing world and the opening up doesn't mean that concerns with regards to security have gone away.'
Trump may strike. He may announce productive talks and extend again. He may do both at the same time. Iran will not open the Strait on someone else's terms, so no matter what happens, that problem will remain unsolved. And the IRGC will still be collecting its $2 million toll from every ship bold enough to ask permission to pass.
Indian boxers are set to compete at the Asian Championships in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, aiming for medals and direct qualification for major multi-sport events later in the year.
'I think it was good that starting the season with a really good performance.'
Kimi Antonelli becomes Formula One's youngest championship leader after Japanese GP win, breaking Lewis Hamilton's record and extending his dream start.
Former champion Dinesh Khanna sees similarities between his 1965 Badminton Asia Championships win and Ayush Shetty's current run in the tournament.
The question is whether the clocks allow enough time for two deeply mistrustful sides to get there, and whether the surface calm holds long enough for the paddling to produce something before the ceasefire ends on April 22, notes Prem Panicker in his must read blog on the Iran War.
P V Sindhu took the opening game 21-11 before Akane Yamaguchi, who was wearing a knee brace, decided to pull out of the match.
Pakistan launched a retaliatory operation, 'Ghazab lil Haq,' against the Afghan Taliban following alleged border attacks, resulting in reported casualties and destruction of Taliban infrastructure.
'American stature has been reduced because they have not been able to achieve their aims.'
The clock on the ceasefire is running out. But everyone's already whispering about round two, possibly as soon as this weekend.
Chaffing under public ridicule in the US as well as internationally for having 'lost' the war, Trump is under immense pressure to do something, cautions Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
R Praggnanandhaa leads a fearless new generation at the Candidates 2026 as veterans face a shifting chess landscape ahead of a world title clash.
Aditi Ashok begins her campaign at the Fortinet Founders Cup with an even-par 72, placing her tied for 60th. Hyo Joo Kim leads the tournament after a stellar opening round.
India's top men's doubles pair Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty, seeded third, also progressed without taking the court after receiving a walkover from USA's Chen Zhi Yi and Presley Smith.
Sen, who had broken the three-year jinx of first-round exits in the tournament when he defeated Singapore's Jia Heng Jason Teh on Wednesday, succumbed in the pre-quarterfinals against Hong Kong-China's Lee Cheuk Yiu 22-22, 15-21 in 53 minutes.
Coco Gauff started her quest for a maiden Australian Open title with a straight games win over Kamilla Rakhimova to reach the second round.
Doubles is not a sideshow: Yuki Bhambri on re-invention and right support
IMAGES from Day 4 of the matches played at the Australian Open at Melbourne Park on Wednesday.
The logic of war plus the gathering storms in US politics as the midterms loom large leave him with no real alternative but to negotiate, points out Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
Elina Svitolina was tested by China's Wang Xinyu in the Auckland Open final on Sunday but came through 6-3, 7-6(6) to kick off her new season with her 19th WTA title.
India ace Lakshya Sen made a fine start to the new season, advancing to the men's singles second round with a hard-fought win over Jia Heng Jason Teh of Singapore at the Malaysia Open Super 750 badminton tournament in Kuala Lumpur on Tuesday.
By all available indications, the White House drafted a face-saving note and handed it, ready-made, to Islamabad. Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif was supposed to then post it in the guise of a plea urging Trump to extend the deadline by two weeks 'to allow diplomacy to run its course'. Trump would then graciously accept Pakistan's 'request' and declare a ceasefire. Sharif dutifully posted the message on X. Except that he, or whoever was handling the account, forgot to delete the tell-tale first line visible in the edit history: 'Draft - Pakistan's PM Message on X'. Prem Panicker's must read blog on the Iran War.
Ambassadors of the Quad nations, consisting of the United States, India, Australia and Japan, held a rare publicised meeting in Beijing.
'Was the five-day pause ever meant to hold, or was it simply another instrument of signaling, of positioning, of buying time in a war where even the pauses are tactical?' asks Prem Panicker in his must read daily blog on the Gulf War.
United States President Donald Trump has issued a strong warning to Iran, asserting that any attempt to impede the transit of petroleum through the Strait of Hormuz would be met with massive military retaliation.
'The next two to three weeks will not be decided in Washington.' 'They will be decided in Tehran, in whatever calculation Iran makes about the costs of continued resistance against the costs of appearing to have yielded.'
India's top sprinters are set to compete in the International Invitation Relay Competition in Chandigarh, aiming to qualify for the World Athletics Relays in Botswana. Several national relay teams are hoping to secure their place at the World Relays in Gaborone.
Young badminton players Ayush Shetty and Tanvi Sharma will lead the Indian contingent at the Orleans Masters Super 300 tournament after HS Prannoy's withdrawal due to a shoulder injury.
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