'We could tweak a few things along the way if things do not go to plan, but we have a certain style of play and Belgium do too. I am sure it will be a wonderful game of football. The winner will be the team who makes the fewest errors.'
The country will host the first ever live NBA match in October this year
Rediff.com brings you a collection of some of the odd and unusual sports images from around the world in recent weeks.
Qatar inaugurated the fourth of eight 2022 World Cup venues, the Al Rayyan Stadium, when the country hosted the Amir Cup final between Al-Sadd and Al-Arabi on Friday.
Barty is primed to become the first local since Chris O'Neil in 1978 to win the Australian Open.
'The prime minister in a way defeated the ill-designs of separatist forces.'
A salute to the youngest Param Vir Chakra Awardee, Subedar Major (Honorary Captain) Yogendra Singh Yadav who has retired from the Indian Army.
The main elements of the programme are bilateral meetings with the US leadership, participation in the Quad Leaders' Summit, address at the UN General Assembly and business interactions.
>All old signposts have been uprooted and milestones bulldozed. New ones have yet to emerge. The old order stands degraded in the new landscape whose contours are indistinct, observes Mohammad Sayeed Malik, the distinguished commentator on Kashmir affairs.
The future challenger to Narendra Modi would be somebody who can bring the Hindus and Muslims together again. The Hindus as Hindus, not broken caste groups, asserts Shekhar Gupta.
Bharat Biotech's Covaxin has demonstrated 77.8 per cent effectiveness against symptomatic COVID-19 and 65.2 per cent protection against the new Delta variant.
Mayank Agarwal has been in top form in Test cricket and he could carry that form into the limited overs series if picked in the playing XI. The Karnataka cricketer is currently playing in the Ranji Trophy and will join the national squad before the opening ODI.
Los Angeles Lakers legend Kobe Bryant was inducted posthumously into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame on Saturday.
Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic won their matches for their respective countries on Day 4 of the ATP Cup on Monday.
Novak Djokovic kicked off his season in style with a 7-5, 7-5 win over Canadian talent Denis Shapovalov on his favourite Rod Laver Arena court on Tuesday before returning to lead Serbia to a doubles victory that sealed their ATP Cup opener 2-1.
Italy sealed a place in the semi-finals of the ATP Cup by winning both singles matches against France
Jawaharlal Nehru was a man of the people and of many gifts and achievements, says veteran author Ruskin Bond in his new book, and describes Prime Minister Narendra Modi as a man of humble beginnings, whose political acumen and yogic willpower have brought him to the top.
Rediff.com introduces you to the athletes who have brought India glory in Birmingham.
How Shivani Gupta bounced back from a major accident is sure to inspire you.
The 2011 US Open champion could not wait to join her friend for the 'Barty Party'.
Ash Barty has become the first local woman to reach the final of an Australian Open in 42 years.
In a statement, UEFA suggested alternative dates for the gesture during the tournament.
Organisers played a wrong national anthem for Moldova ahead of their tie against Belgium in Sydney. Denis Shapovalov won the battle of the next generation against Greek Stefanos Tsitsipas to help Canada to an emphatic 3-0 victory in the inaugural ATP Cup men's team event in Brisbane on Friday.
Vinesh, who had travelled to Tokyo from Hungary where he had trained with coach Woller Akos, had refused to stay at the Games Village and train with the other Indian team members.
The US "Indo-Pacific Strategy" is bound to be a failed strategy, Wang said in the comments posted by the Chinese foreign ministry on its website.
'Although Hong Kong weathered many a storm and displayed a remarkable resilience to bounce back, the developments in the territory have raised question marks with regard to its future stability and prosperity.' A revealing excerpt from Rup Narayan Das's Hong Kong Conundrum: Pangs of Transition.
Players from Brazilian club Gremio took to the field wearing masks in protest at having to play a soccer match as fears over coronavirus grow in the South American nation. The protest comes as players and clubs across South America are starting to complain at decisions by footballing authorities to order games to be played, but behind closed doors.
Real Madrid beat Manchester United 2-1 on Tuesday to lift the European Super Cup for the fourth time as they became the first team to retain the trophy since AC Milan in 1990.
Six-time World champion M C Mary Kom's pursuit of a second Olympic medal ended in the pre-quarter-finals of the Tokyo Games after she went down to Colombia's Ingrit Valencia, the 2016 edition's bronze-medallist, in a fiercely-fought 51kg showdown on Thursday.
Chanu has consistently improved in the section to stay in contention for medals at top events.
Kohli, in a series of tweets, said racial abuse is 'absolutely unacceptable' and needs to be looked at with 'absolute urgency'.
The BFI wanted to start the camp on June 10 originally but had been waiting to secure permissions from the state government and the Sports Authority of India (SAI).
There have been at least 1,641 cases of the virus in the Gulf region. Dubai has postponed its March boat show until November and Abu Dhabi postponed the ITU World Triathlon event this month, after earlier cancelling a cycling event in which two riders were diagnosed with the virus.
Lovlina Borgohain will be in pursuit of history when she takes on reigning World champion Busenaz Surmeneli of Turkey in the Olympics boxing 67 kg semi-finals, in Tokyo, on Wednesday.
Former US President Barack Obama congratulated LeBron James a day after he picked up his fourth NBA title, as prominent figures in sports, politics and beyond celebrated the Los Angeles Lakers championship.
Tennis's flagship team events the Davis Cup and Fed Cup Finals have been postponed until 2021 because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the International Tennis Federation (ITF) said on Friday. Professional tennis has been suspended since March and will not return until August.
Indian comic book character Chacha Chaudhary has been declared as the mascot of the government's Namami Gange Programme with an aim of bringing behavioural change among children towards the Ganga and other rivers.
The hosts had blanked Germany in their opening tie and became the first to seal a quarter-final spot with their second 3-0 win in the inaugural team event.
The Budget announcement of taxing 'virtual digital assets' or crypto currencies will help the income-tax department measure the "depth" of this trade in the country, know the investors and the nature of their investments and it does not "attach any legality" to these transactions, Central Board of Direct Taxes chairman J B Mohapatra said.
