Pirlo started his first season in charge of a senior side looking to make it 10 successive Serie A titles for Juve, but the rookie coach struggled.
Indians will forever remember Akram as the scary phenomenon with the soft smile, the man who rattled through the Indian batting order, but was rarely as hated as Waqar or Shoaib Akhtar, observes Vaibhav Raghunandan.
The 'sleeping giant' woke up to a new dawn with the Indian Super League putting Indian football on the global map, but the national team continued to paint a grim picture, plummeting to its worst-ever rankings in an eventful year for the sport.
Legendary former India footballer and celebrated coach Subhas Bhowmick died after prolonged illness in the wee hours of Saturday, according to family sources.
'Indian hockey will lose out on one of its most important nurseries of good hockey talent.'
Indian bridge contingent continue to be the victims of the official apathy from the Indian Olympic Association (IOA), who are yet to provide them with team blazers.
'I am a gadha (donkey)! But God has been on my side and I have managed to produce players,' Dronacharya Awardee Merzban Patel tells Laxmi Negi/Rediff.com.
The earliest ones included whistles shaped like birds, toy monkeys that could slide down a string and small carts made from materials found in nature such as sticks, clay and rocks. While there might be no disputing India's rich toy-making tradition, the industry is languishing for lack of investment and technology, and also owing to competition from cheap imports. And though it has been listed among 24 key sectors under the government's Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyaan, the question remains: will this push help place it in the global game? Currently, 80-odd per cent of the toys sold in India are imported - nearly 60 per cent of them from China.
New AIFF boss focuses on grassroots and youth development than hosting big events.
I M Vijayan is amazed at Indian football's leap from amateurism to professionalism.
Digvijay Singh and Gaurav Ghei tallied two-under 70 under the four-ball format, to place four strokes behind the leaders.
While SA great Lance Klusener hailed Hardik Pandya as one of the best fast-bowling allrounders, he believes Pandya gave up on Test cricket too easily.
Among other transfer news globally, defender Rahul Bheke joins Mumbai City FC while Locatelli completes Juventus move.
Hockey coach Ramesh Parameswaran applies for Dronacharya Award
India's top golfers returned to practice at courses across the country after weeks of inactivity brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Thierry Henry came to Mumbai and left his fans in a daze as he showed off that famed, magical footwork while he trained budding talent from the city.
The Tokyo Paralympics slated to begin on August 24, will be Jhajharia's third Paralympics.
The ace midfielder passed away following a heart attack.
Former Santosh Trophy National Football Championship player, E Hamsakoya, who had tested positive for COVID-19, succumbed to the virus early Saturday at a hospital in Malappuram, taking the toll due to the infection in the state to 15. Native of nearby Parappanangadi, Hamsakoya (61) had settled in Mumbai. He and his family had come down to his hometown on May 21 and had been under quarantine.
Defending champion Sania Mirza and Cara Black knocked out Martina Hingis and Belinda Bencic in straight sets to reach the semi-finals of the Toray Pan Pacific Open, in Tokyo.
While the 54-year-old Van Ass, who was at the helm of affairs of the Dutch team from 2010 to 2014, will take charge of the men's team, New Zealand's Anthony Thornton, 47, will replace Neil Hawgood as coach of the women's senior team.
"India should also be a powerhouse in world football but it is not, because of match-fixing in cricket for goodness sake'
India has a population of 1.3 billion but the nation's obsession with and success on the cricket pitch has left it a massive underachiever on the football field.
A summary of sports events and persons who made news on Sunday
History beckons trailblazers Bengaluru FC as they lock horns with Air Force Club of Iraq in the summit clash of AFC Cup in Doha on Saturday, aiming to become the first Indian football club to clinch a continental title. Bengaluru FC have already created history by becoming the first Indian club to qualify for the final of a continental tournament after they defeated defending champions Johor Darul Ta'zim in the semifinals on 4-2 aggregate last month. Before this, the farthest an Indian club had advanced in a continental tournament was the two AFC Cup semifinal appearances by Dempo in 2008 and East Bengal in 2013.
P V Sindhu opens her campaign in the China Open women's singles against Evgeniya Kosetskaya of Russia, in Fuzhou, China, on Tuesday.
Pankaj Advani won his 25th World crown on Saturday after a resounding 4-0 victory over fellow-Indian Sourav Kothari in the 150-up billiards final at the IBSF World Championships in Kuala Lumpur on Saturday.
Shubhankar tied 110th after Rd 1 of English Championship
Young prodigy Yashasvi Jaiswal on Thursday said batting stalwart Rahul Dravid had advised him to focus on each ball and this suggestion immensely helped him.
'I have filed my nomination for AIFF president's post and I feel I am the right person for the job'
Former India captain Jude Felix has been appointed coach of the senior men's hockey team. The Olympian will work under chief coach Terry Walsh, Hockey India said on Wednesday.
The recovered cases are nearly 10 times more than the active cases, it said. The active caseload of the country has fallen below 7 lakh for the first time after two months (63 days), the ministry said.
According to Jhingan, not being able to play in the ISL or international matches would have been more frustrating for him.
Designated I-League champions Mohun Bagan have announced a donoation of 20 lakh in the fight against the coronavirus pandemic while Bhaichung Bhutia will feature in Asian Football Confederation's (AFC) public awareness campaign on the COVID-19 pandemic,
Croatian wunderkind Borna Coric offered emphatic proof of his potential when he crushed Rafael Nadal in the Swiss Indoor tournament on Friday before local hero Roger Federer cruised into the last four.
'The CoA (which is running the show in AIFF after the suspension of president Praful Patel) must go deep into this appalling incident and find out who all are responsible behind it. There are many scams waiting to see the light of the day.'
From international sporting legends to national sporting icons, everyone took time out to wish fans and well-wishers for Diwali.
India's Leander Paes and Rohan Bopanna crashed out of the Japan Open following a straight set defeat against Ivan Dodig and Marcelo Melo, in Tokyo on Thursday.
Sunil Chhetri became the 8th top scorer in international football after equalling Brazil legend Pele's goal tally.
City Football Group Chief Executive Officer Ferran Soriano said there is no doubt that India will become a major football nation in the coming years.
