2018 was largely forgettable for Sushil Kumar -- India's only double Olympic-medallist -- and Sakshi Malik -- the country's first and only woman wrestler to win a medal at the biggest stage.
India FA eye origin players for short-term solution
Chasing a third successive Asian Games medal, Indian boxer Vikas Krishan (75kg) made a strong start, out-punching Pakistan's Tanveer Ahmed in his pre-quarterfinal bout in Jakarta, on Monday.
All possibilities behind the disappearance of Malaysian Airlines flight MH370 are being looked into, Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak said in a press conference held on Saturday morning.
'The separatist resurgence in Balochistan is thwarting Pakistan's plans to build CPEC projects to optimally utilise Balochistan's energy reserves,' points out Brigadier Gurmeet Kanwal (retd).
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
'Either China is building regional transport infrastructure long before it needs it, or this is in a chain of Chinese investments with more strategic than economic intent,' says T N Ninan.
Tiny Guam beat Turkmenistan 1-0 to record their first ever World Cup qualifying victory.
Olympian Sumit Sangwan (81kg) and Vikash Malik (60kg) fought through intense bouts to enter the pre-quarterfinals but Mandeep Jangra (69kg) bowed out after a stiff second-round contest on a mixed day for India in the World Boxing Championships in Almaty on Sunday.
Masterminded superbly by ace striker Sunil Chhetri, a dominant India scripted a sensational 4-1 win over higher-ranked Puerto Rico in an international football friendly at the Andheri Sports Complex stadium in Mumbai on Saturday.
A summary of sports events and persons who made news on Sunday
A list of all the foreign visits taken up by PM Narendra Modi this year and their outcomes.
A summary of sports events and sports persons, who made news on Thursday
Summary of sports events and persons who made news on Friday
Abdiev Asliddin scored in each half as Uzbekistan beat India 3-0 in a crucial Group A encounter of the AFC U-29 Championship (Qualifiers) at the Al Arabi Stadium in Doha on Thursday. Abdiev scored at the end of first half and beginning of the second, and set up another goal to hand his side three important points.
Efforts to normalise trading relations expected during the first such meet on Saturday
Describing India as a long-standing strategic partner in fight against terror, Israel has said that it will "not do anything that could undermine India's security" in a strong bid to re-assure New Delhi that reports of arms sale to Pakistan were incorrect.
A summary of sports events and sports persons, who made news on Monday
The declaration also names Pak-based terror groups like LeT and JeM.
The government does not seem inclined, at least in the petroleum sector, to effect sudden and steep upward price revisions to tame its huge subsidy burden and rein in fiscal deficit.
The prime minister said there was a need to demonstrate strong and collective will to defeat terror networks that cause bloodshed and spread fear.
An acid test awaits the Indian football team as they host higher-ranked Oman in the second round opening match of the AFC qualification for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Bengaluru on Thursday.
'The BJP has bent. Pakistan has not changed a single thing. It is the BJP and its supporters who have changed. And this is a very good thing,' says Aakar Patel.
It is important the SCO focus strongly on economic development and regional integration that leads to greater benefits for the least developed regions of member-countries, writes Sana Hashmi.
'While visits and personal meetings are useful, changes of strategic significance have occurred recently, with Beijing trying to take the lead which Modi must take note of.'
'It is important to note that American officials were trying their best to use the Taliban for their oil games till December 1997 when Mullah Ghous was invited to America. State Department officials did not show any interest in capturing or killing Osama bin Laden even at that time.'
Investigators were on Sunday examining a flight simulator found at the home of a pilot of the missing Malaysian plane with 239 people on board, as they refocused on "those in the cockpit" who knew how to avoid detection by radars.
'There were assurances that Jaish-e-Mohammad was being reined in as was the Lashkar-e-Tayiba, but Pakistan's security forces could not risk opening too many dangerous new fronts,' notes former foreign secretary Ambassador Shyam Saran, who has just returned from a visit to Lahore.
Afghan President Hamid Karzai is in Pakistan on a day-long visit to mend frayed ties with Pakistan and to seek the release of high-profile Taliban prisoners, including Mullah Barader, to give a fresh impetus to the reconciliation process in his war-torn country.
'... For the India-US relationship to continue its positive trajectory, it will require India to adapt to a different approach.' Nisha Desai Biswal -- who as the Obama administration's point person for South Asia was in the inner circle of all the Obama-Modi Summits -- tells Rediff.com's Monali Sarkar why she is hopeful that India and the US are on an irreversible forward course.
Hein Kiessling has the kind of access in Pakistan that journalists (and spies) would die for, says Kanika Datta.
Condemning terrorism in all its forms and manifestations, US President Barack Obama and Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Thursday said that no country's territory should be used to destabilise its neighbours.
Malaysian authorities are probing new information that the missing plane with 239 people on board dropped to an altitude of 5,000 feet or possibly lower to evade radar detection after it turned back midair.
Kuala Lumpur's delay in roping in India to help track the missing aircraft is an indicator that New Delhi must redouble its diplomacy and capacity demonstration in East Asia, feels Nitin Pai
On the second leg of his trip to Central Asia, Narendra Modi makes quite an impression in Astana, as he talks about terror and trade, films and the future
New Delhi must indicate to Afghan President Ashraf Ghani that it has a long-term strategy for his country. It should point out that Pakistan's present Afgan policy will destabilise Afghanistan and help Islamic State, says Gautam Sen.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
Since multilateral trade creates a stable, peaceful world, normalisation of bilateral trade between India and Pakistan will start a series of peace building measures, especially along the bordering areas of both states which is the worst affected from the on-going conflict, say Riya Sinha and Shehzad Poonawalla.
An array of Olympians and stars of sports niche and new arrive in the South Korean city of Incheon for the 17th Asian Games this month, bringing together some 10,000 athletes for a 16-day multi-sport spectacular second only in scale to the Summer Olympics.
How much money the Modi government has already spent and is going to spend on all those foreign trips, muses Sunita Iyer
