The elephant in the room will permeate the conversations, predicts Rup Narayan Das.
The immensely talented Shreyas Iyer enhanced his reputation of a finisher with a scintillating 29-ball-58, as India crushed New Zealand by six wickets in a high-scoring first T20 International in Auckland on Friday. Iyer built on KL Rahul's (56 off 27 balls) blazing start and Virat Kohli's useful 45 off 32 balls as India made short work of a 204-run target, knocking it off with an over to spare.
All team members, riders and staff had until 1100 GMT on Monday, the Tour's first rest day, to take a test in the mobile laboratory provided by organisers.
Stage eight winner Nans Peters had long crossed the line when fellow Frenchman Thibaut Pinot's ordeal ended after the Groupama-FDJ rider, highly fancied to become the first local winner of the race in 35 years, had been dropped in the second ascent of the 141-km trek through the Pyrenees.
Liverpool's first loss of the season means they cannot finish the campaign unbeaten to match Arsenal's 'Invincibles' of 2003-04.
Debutant Stefanos Tsitsipas crushed defending champion Alexander Zverev 6-3, 6-2 on Wednesday to book his place in the last four of the ATP Finals with a match to spare.
Guardiola said City had plenty of options, with Gabriel Jesus the only main striker fit and ready but Ilkay Gundogan and Raheem Sterling are able to slot into the role.
Summary of World Cup qualifiers played across the world on Thursday
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field.
Liverpool moved into the Champions League qualifying spots after a 3-0 win at Burnley on Wednesday took them above Leicester City and into fourth place with one round of Premier League matches remaining.
Each Round of 16 game was entertaining. Laxmi Negi/Rediff.com picks the games to remember.
Premier League Leeds United suffered the biggest upset of the FA Cup third round when they fell to a 3-0 defeat by fourth-tier Crawley Town on Sunday
Sala, 28, had been flying from Nantes in western France to Wales on Jan. 21 to make his debut for Premier League team Cardiff City when the single-engined Piper Malibu aircraft disappeared over the sea.
Indian rower Dattu Baban Bhokanal finished fourth in the quarter-finals of the men's single sculls to be out of medal reckoning in the Rio Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro on Tuesday. Bhokanal clocked 6:59.89 to cover a distance of 2000m, little more than six seconds behind the third and last qualifier from the quarterfinal 4, Natan Wegrzycki-Szymczyk (6:53.52) from Poland.
Since his June trek with his wife up Mont Sainte-Victoire, the mountain that famously also served as an inspiration for Paul Cezanne, the 31-year-old has added a pair of Grand Slam titles to his resume.
Images from the UEFA Champions League matches played on Tuesday night.
World champion Peter Sagan claimed his third 2016 Tour de France stage victory when he pipped Alexander Kristoff on the line at the end of the 16th stage, a 209-km ride from Moirans-en-Montagne on Monday.
The defence ministry took the decision to hold the biennial event as scheduled following inputs from major stakeholders including the domestic defence industry and global aerospace majors, official sources said.
Rodriguez whipped Everton in front from the edge of the box, and Michael Keane and Calvert-Lewin ensured it was two wins from two in the Premier League so far this season.
The draw interrupted a run of four straight league wins for Zinedine Zidane's side and left them second on 67 points after 31 games, three behind leaders Atletico who thrashed Eibar 5-0 earlier in the day.
Thierry Henry's infamous handball in a qualification playoff game for the 2010 World Cup against Ireland will play no role when the two teams meet on Sunday for a place in the Euro 2016 quarter-finals, France coach Didier Deschamps said on Saturday.
Argentine tennis player Juan Martin Del Potro has revealed that he was robbed at a Paris railway station with thieves getting away with his cherished rosary that was blessed by Pope Francis.
At the medal ceremony, Scott shook hands with fellow bronze medallist Martin Malyutin of Russia, who finished with the same time as the Briton, but then completely cold shouldered Sun, refusing to make eye contact and not offering a handshake.
Known for his tongue-in-cheek take on life and cricket, New Zealand all-rounder Jimmy Neesham believes focussing on the funny side of things helps him cope with difficult situations like the coronavirus pandemic currently sweeping through the world. Asked about the role humour plays in handling difficulties, the Black Caps all-rounder, who keeps his fans entertained with witty one-liners on his social media accounts, said it is vital when the going gets tough.
'It's important we learn from this and when we get back together as a red ball team, we face India and we can hopefully play our brand of cricket'.
Juan Martin del Potro took advantage of an error-strewn Marin Cilic performance to beat the defending champion for a seventh time in a row on Saturday to set up another Swiss Indoors final showdown with Roger Federer.
Images from football matches played across Europe.
IMAGES from the English Premier League matches played on Wednesday
Following that nerve-wracking final, the ICC faced the wrath of fans and former players over the controversial rule.
Sunderland entrusted flamboyant Italian Paolo Di Canio with the task of securing their Premier League survival when they appointed him as head coach in place of the sacked Martin O'Neill on Sunday.
It will be 'Mother's Day' on Wimbledon's Centre Court on Monday when Serena Williams takes on fellow mum Evgeniya Rodina for a place in the quarter-finals of the grasscourt major.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
An unassailable lead has opened up the window for experimentation but there will be no letup in India's intensity when they face a heartbroken New Zealand team in the fourth T20 International, in Wellington, on Friday. Sanju Samson and Rishabh Pant are waiting for opportunities, with the former expected to get a look-in. Pant's call-up would depend on which batsman is left out, and whether KL Rahul will continue to keep wickets.
'I'm not in favour of the boycott. In sports, you never use the word boycott. My fundamental principle is either we withdraw permanently or go and compete'
IMAGES from the EPL match played between Arsenal and Newcastle on Monday
Barca finished the season second in the standings on 82 points, four behind champions Real Madrid who visit Leganes later on Sunday. Alaves are 16th on 39.
World Athletics also said that as far as it was aware, there were no longer insurance policies available for the coronavirus.
Birmingham has been chosen as the host venue for the 2022 Commonwealth Games, organisers announced on Thursday with the Midlands city being the only bidder.
As captain, the former world number one led the United States to a 10-8 record in World Group play, including a run to the semi-finals in 2012 and 2018, the latter which ended in a loss to Croatia 11 days ago.
UEFA believes the 24-team format introduced for the first time at Euro 2016 is a success and will boost soccer in some of the continent's smaller nations, tournament director Martin Kallen said on Tuesday.
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