While Rohit Sharma will be eager to test his ultra-aggressive batting template against the Asian giants, for Virat Kohli it is the perfect platform to return to form after enduring a tough phase in the last few years.
A day after the Ministry of Home Affairs allowed sports complexes and stadia to open without spectators, National Sports Federations were deliberating ways to facilitate training of at least the Olympic-bound athletes. The lockdown has been extended till May 31.
Virat Kohli's decision to quit Royal Challengers Bangalore captaincy after the ongoing season had no impact on the team's performance against Kolkata Knight Riders, asserted head coach Mike Hesson.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field.
Up against the 91st-ranked Bahrain, Stimac's side, which is currently placed at 104 in the FIFA rankings, found the going tough from the word go and, had it not been for a fine save by skipper Gurpreet Singh Sandhu, the Indians would have trailed by a bigger margin at half time.
A summary of sports events and sports persons, who made news on Monday
The second match of the four-game series was postponed on Tuesday when four more UAE players tested positive for the novel coronavirus, taking the total to seven COVID-19 cases.
Both Sathiyan and Sharath Kamal are seeded in the 17-32 bracket and will get a first-round bye.
Ambani's holding group launched the Indian Super League, an elite competition of newly created teams, in 2014 with the aim of attracting investment and big global names, much like the Indian Premier League has in cricket. 'It was 100% a wasted opportunity'.
The boxing camp is due to begin in the next couple of weeks for just the Olympic-bound.
Packed soccer schedule is a major problem as players will struggle to deliver their best
The athletes were unable to enter Australia due to government restrictions on foreign nationals travelling from China.
India's nine Olympic-bound boxers will travel abroad for a three-week training stint after getting a few days' break following a record-shattering medal haul by the country's pugilists at the recently-concluded Asian Championships in Dubai.
Summary of sports events and persons who made news on Tuesday.
'Everyone wants to get involved when there is success.' 'But what about guaranteeing it?' 'Making sure girls have the opportunity to succeed all the time?'
Pakistan Hockey Federation had sought a loan from the PCB to send the team to Bhubaneswar and clear the outstanding dues of players.
Mr Warne, the world will miss you.
Amit Panghal (52kg) picked up his second successive gold medal of the year
Manpreet was one of the six hockey players to test positive for COVID-19 at the team's training base in Bengaluru last month after they arrived for the national camp.
'If he gets a couple of early wickets, he will be a different bowler but things may not go as per plan. It might take some time for him to get back the rhythm.'
The 25-year-old from Punjab threw a personal best of 64 metres to finish second in Group B in the qualifying round.
India football captain Sunil Chhetri believes that the country's budding soccer players should get a chance to train in European academies in order to improve their skills. The man with 72 international goals described his stint with Sporting Lisbon as a 'great experience'.
Denmark's Christian Eriksen was given CPR by medical staff on the pitch during the Euro 2020 match against Finland before being rushed to a nearby hospital.
Newly-appointed chief coach Graham Reid's biggest desire is to have a 'stable environment' for himself as well as his players.
Turambekar's story is inspiring, to say the least. Read on as she recounts her remarkable journey in conversation with Rediff.com's Laxmi Negi.
Indian freestyle wrestlers claim Asian team title in U-17 category
Union Sports Secretary Injeti Srinivas on Saturday made it clear that Saketh Myneni is "no less deserving" than Rohan Bopanna for the prestigious Arjuna award despite questions being raised about his merit.
The Pakistan Cricket Board has found an unique way to tap budding talent.
'The response to savagery and mass injustice is never a persistent howl.' 'There will be, among the victims, those who choose to forget the scars, those who go on living, those who challenge the overall environment of sentimentality.' 'And the more effort you put into including these other voices, into assimilating these spoilsports, the more balanced your depiction of the tragedy in question will be,' observes Sreehari Nair.
'Most of our elite athletes are in national camps so they are safer.' 'They don't have to go out to buy vegetables or groceries; they are not as exposed as we are.' 'Most of them work for government organisations, they get salaries and stipends.'
Sports Minister Kiren Rijiju on Tuesday said a team has been formed to draw up a post-lockdown Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) to be followed by athletes, coaches and other staff during outdoor training that will resume in a "planned manner". He assured the athletes that their training will resume soon but given the risks the coronavirus pandemic poses, the process will involve consultations with home and health ministries.
As boxer Nikhat Zareen prepares to head to her first World Championships in the 51 kg category, she feels she has plenty in her armoury to go the distance.
Criticised for lack of planning, the National Rifle Association of India (NRAI) decided to accept the recommendations of Abhinav Bindra-led review committee, which looked into Indian shooters' flop show in Rio Olympics, in 'toto' and said it will form a separate panel to ensure the implementation of the suggestions.
The Indian men's hockey team captain Manpreet Singh and the four other players who have tested positive for COVID-19 were showing only "mild symptoms" and they were doing well, the doctors from Sports Authority of India said on Saturday.
Confined to their hostel rooms at NIS Patiala amid the coronavirus-forced lockdown, some athletes, led by star sprinter Hima Das, have requested the sports ministry to allow them to train outdoors within the campus, which is out of bounds for outsiders right now. Deputy chief national athletics coach Radhakrishnan Nair, who is supporting the move, said that the Hima-led campers at the National Institute of Sports (NIS) are expecting a reply from the ministry in a day or two.
'I need this desperately to assess myself before the Olympics'
Hoping for an improved performance in next month's table tennis World Championships in Rotterdam, Indian paddlers will undergo a 21-day training camp in China from April 16 to May 6.
For the Dronacharya awards, the BFI has finalised the names of national women's coach Mohammed Ali Qamar and assistant coach Chhote Lal Yadav.
'I have always believed in building a 'team for the future'. Eventually, in a few years, these guys will represent India National Team. My eventual goal is to unearth some talents who'll be ready for the senior national team'
National football coach Wim Koevermans today named 30 probables for the preparatory camp for the AFC Challenge Cup Qualifiers scheduled to be held in Myanmar capital of Yangon from March 2-6 with no major surprises in the list.
