New Delhi, May 21 (IANS) Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) will face Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in the first qualifier of the IPL on Tuesday. Ahead of the highly awaited encounter, Bayern Munich striker Harry Kane has sent the team his best wishes for the playoffs.

“Hey Kolkata Knight Riders, great start to the season. Wishing all the Knights the very best for the remainder of the season. Sending our support from F.C Bayern Munich,” said the English forward in a video posted by KKR on X.

Kane is coming off a disappointing first season with Bayern Munich even though he had a stellar record throughout. The former Spurs man played 45 games and scored 44 goals alongside 12 assists but in a club like Bayern, trophies are a must and the team endured their first trophyless season since 2001/02.

The English captain will now look to join up with his national teammates for two friendlies against Bosnia and Herzegovina and Iceland before the 2024 Euros taking place in Germany, a country which has seen his talent on the pitch first hand.

The Knight Riders on the other hand have had a great league stage during the course of the 2024 IPL losing only 3 of 14 games this season which saw them finish first in the league and set up their clash with SRH.

The winner of the first qualifier will get a direct ticket to the finals of the tournament which is scheduled to be played on Sunday, whereas the loser will get one more chance to qualify through the second qualifiers where they will face the winner of the Eliminator between RR and RCB.

–IANS

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Kobe (Japan), May 21 (IANS) India’s Ekta Bhyan secured the gold medal in the women’s F51 club throw event with a season’s best throw of 20.12m on Day five of the World Para Athletics Championships, here on Tuesday.

It was a double podium finish for India in the competition as Kashish Lakra secured a silver medal with a 14.56m mark.

Nadjet Boucherf of Algeria pocketed the bronze with 12.70m.

With a gold and silver on Tuesday, India’s medal tally rose to seven medals — 2 gold, 4 silver and 2 bronze.

On Day four, the 20-year-old Deepthi Jeevanji smashed the world record in the women’s 400m T20 and grabbed her first gold at the World Championships on Monday.

Later, Ace para discus thrower Yogesh Kathuniya secured a silver medal in the F56 category. Bhagyashri Jadhav wrapped up a day with a silver in Women’s Shot Put F34.

On Day three, Preethi Pal won a bronze medal in the Women’s 200m T35 final while Nidhad Kumar bagged silver in Men’s High Jump T47 with an impressive season-best mark of 1.99m.

–IANS

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New Delhi, May 21 (IANS) The past week was a very busy one in La Liga with two matchdays taking place over the past seven days. The results of all these games have cleared up several of the remaining duels in the standings, such as the race for Europe and the relegation battle.

Real Sociedad win at Real Betis to seal Europa League qualification:

The European battle was settled in Matchday 37, as a result of the direct duel between Real Sociedad and Real Betis. The Basques won 2-0 away at Los Verdiblancos thanks to goals from Brais Mendez and Mikel Merino, a result which confirmed that they will finish sixth and enter the Europa League. Despite the defeat, results elsewhere mean that Real Betis are guaranteed to finish seventh, and enter next season’s Conference League.

Cadiz CF are relegated to La Liga Hypermotion:

The results of Matchday 37 also confirmed that Cadiz CF will finish the season in the bottom three. Unable to do any better than a 0-0 draw with UD Las Palmas, Cadiz CF join UD Almería and Granada CF in being relegated down to La Liga Hypermotion.

FC Barcelona will play in the 2024/25 Spanish Super Cup:

Barca achieved a 3-0 win over Rayo Vallecano in their final home game of the season, with those three points meaning they’ll definitely finish second, ahead of Girona FC. As such, Xavi’s side enter next season’s Spanish Super Cup, where they’ll battle with Real Madrid, Athletic Club and RCD Mallorca for that trophy.

Sorloth storms to the top of the Pichichi standings:

With one round remaining, there is now a new leader at the top of the rankings for the Pichichi Trophy, the prize given out each season to the top scorer in La Liga EA Sports. That new leader is Villarreal CF’s Alexander Sorloth, who put in an incredible performance on Sunday by scoring all four of his team’s goals in a 4-4 draw with Real Madrid. He now sits on 23 goals, two ahead of Girona FC’s Artem Dovbyk on 21.

The Zamora Trophy will go down to the wire:

The Zamora Trophy, for the goalkeeper with the best goals-conceded ratio, will be decided on the final matchday and there are three goalkeepers still very much in the mix. Unai Simón of Athletic Club currently leads the way on 0.94 goals conceded per game, but he is closely followed by Marc-Andre ter Stegen of FC Barcelona, on 0.96, and by Alex Remiro of Real Sociedad, on 0.97.

Raul Garcia and Muniain bid farewell to San Mames with goals:

Sunday evening was always going to be special for Raul García and for Iker Muniain, as they played their final home game at San Mames. Even in their dreams, they surely couldn’t have imagined that they would be the authors of the two goals in a 2-0 Athletic Club victory. Yet, that’s exactly what happened, as they bid farewell in style.

Injury ends Isco’s wonderful season:

Isco has enjoyed a wonderful 2023/24 campaign, dazzling in Real Betis’ midfield. He looked set to go to Euro 2024 with Spain, however the midfielder fractured the fibula in his left leg this past week, meaning that he’ll play no further part for Los Verdiblancos this term and that he won’t be able to go to Germany with his country.

Sevilla FC will search for a new coach in the summer:

It was confirmed this past week that Quique Sanchez Flores won’t be staying on as coach of Sevilla FC. The Spaniard came in as the Andalusian’s third coach of this season and helped steer them to mid-table safety, but he’ll depart in the summer and the club will hire a new tactician ahead of the 2024/25 campaign.

Jesus Navas is staying on at Sevilla FC:

Although it initially appeared that Jesus Navas would depart Sevilla FC at the end of this season, the club captain is going to stay on until the end of 2024. That means he’ll be able to add to his current tally of 689 appearances for Los Rojiblancos before it’s expected that he’ll take on another role inside the club.

The Matchday 38 kick-off times are announced

With most of the battles in La Liga EA Sports already decided, there isn’t a need for a unified kick-off time in Matchday 38. As such, there will be one game on Friday, five on Saturday and four on Sunday next weekend. It’ll be Sevilla FC vs FC Barcelona at 9 pm CEST on Sunday to conclude the 2023/24 campaign.

–IANS

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Canberra, May 21 (IANS) Football Australia (FA) has announced the Matildas’ squad for the Olympic send-off friendlies against China.

Tony Gustavsson, head coach of the national women’s team, on Tuesday revealed his 23-player squad for the games against the Steel Roses in Adelaide on May 31 and Sydney on June 3, reports Xinhua.

The matches will mark the Matildas’ final games in Australia before the Paris Olympics and the first time they have played the Chinese national women’s team since a 1-1 draw in 2020.

Australia’s squad features 21 of the 23 players who helped the Matildas qualify for the Olympics, including veteran goalkeeper Lydia Williams who earlier in May announced she will retire from international football at the conclusion of the Paris games.

“The squad we have named for this upcoming series against China is based on their performances for their respective clubs and also in our national team environment,” Gustavsson said in a statement.

“With the Olympics approaching, selection is about looking at the overall picture spanning four years of performance and assembling the best team possible.”

In announcing the squad, FA confirmed that Matildas captain Sam Kerr – Australia’s all-time leading goal scorer – has been ruled out of the Olympics due to a long-term knee injury.

Midfielder Katrina Gorry, who underwent ankle surgery in April, was also not included in the squad for the China matches but has not been ruled out of the Olympics.

More than 130,000 fans are set to attend the two games between Australia and China after general public tickets for both matches sold out within days of going on sale in March.

–IANS

Sydney, May 21 (IANS) Matildas captain Samantha Kerr has been ruled out of the upcoming Paris Olympics due to her ACL injury, Australia’s governing body of football confirmed on Tuesday.

Football Australia said in a statement that the 30-year-old skipper will continue her rehabilitation program in home club environments and subsequently will not be available for selection for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.

The statement was released on the day when Australia’s head coach Tony Gustavsson unveiled a 23-strong roster for the international series against China in Adelaide and Sydney.

The squad features a slew of stars who helped the team qualify for the Paris 2024 Olympics, including goalkeeper Mackenzie Arnold, defender Ellie Carpenter, and forward Mary Fowler, reports Xinhua.

Meanwhile, ankle and hamstring injuries left Katrina Gorry and Aivi Luik still unavailable. Kerr and fellow attacker Amy Sayer were also sidelined due to their ACL ruptures, which dashed their hopes of competing in the Olympics.

“I think everyone can do the math here and understand that obviously the Olympic roster will be based mostly out of those that are in this upcoming May/June camp,” said Gustavsson.

“However, we also have some players in Katrina and Aivi unavailable for selection for this window but most likely will be physically available to be part of an Olympic roster. This window will be a tough one for me and my staff in terms of evaluating players, where they are, and then the final selection process for Paris,” he added.

–IANS

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