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No Khel Ratna for 2025; Tejaswin, Divya among Arjuna awardees
The sports ministry finally published the list of the recipients of the Arjuna award 237 days after the recommendations were sent for the final approval.
The committee, led by Justice (Retd) Arun Kumar Mishra, had sent a list of 24 names for the award, even as it failed to arrive at a consensus for the biggest sporting honour — the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna. solvita.blog
The selection committee had discussed the names of hockey players Hardik Singh and Vivek Sagar Prasad, hurdler Jyothi Yarraji and archer V Jyoti Surekha but none got the final seal of approval. This would be only the third time in recent history — after 2008 and 2014 — that the committee did not recommend any name for the award.
The Arjuna award list, published on Tuesday, has been pruned down to 17. As per the sports scheme, the independent committee recommends names based on performance points and criteria but the sports minister has the discretionary power to add or remove names from the final list.
The list includes decathlete Tejaswin Shankar, and chess Grandmasters Divya Deshmukh and Vidit Gujarathi. Deshmukh became the first Indian woman to win the World Cup in 2025. Rifle shooter Akhil Sheoran and badminton players Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand are also part of the list.
Surprisingly, Yogasana’s Aarti, who was to become the first award winner from the indigenous sport, has been dropped from the list. Polo athlete Padmanabh Singh, kho kho player Nirmala Bhati, gymnast Pranati Nayak, shooter Mehuli Ghosh, table tennis player Sutirtha Mukherjee and wrestler Sonam Malik also missed out.
For the Dronacharya award, athletics coach Parveer Singh, boxing coach Chhote Lal Yadav and shooting coach Neha Nandkumar Chavan have been given the nod. Boxing coach Dharmendra Singh Yadav and wrestling coach Virender Kumar have been awarded the Dronacharya in the lifetime category. Abhilasha (archery), Shiva Megan (basketball) and Avantika Deka (badminton) have been left out.
The Army Paralympic Node of Pune has been awarded the Rashtriya Khel Protsahan Puruskar for sports promotion and development.
Praggnanandhaa Beats Maxime, Moves to World No. 8 in Live Ratings
Praggnanandhaa produced a big win against Maxime Vachier-Lagrave in the 8th round of the Sinquefield Cup, playing with the black pieces. The game started with a Ruy Lopez, where both the players developed their pieces normally before taking a more aggressive approach.
Maxime tried to put pressure on Pragg by pushing his kingside pawns. He later sacrificed a knight, but Pragg accepted it and remained calm under pressure.
Pragg gradually took control of the game as his pieces became more active. Maxime tried to create some chances, but Pragg defended well and kept the position under control.
Maxime, eventually, had no way to continue and resigned after 27 moves, giving Pragg a well-fought victory.
He is currently ranked second in the Sinquefield Cup Standings with Wesley So securing the first place. Javokhir Sindarov and Vincent Keymer are currently on 4.5 points, making the final round of the tournament interesting where Wesley will face Sindarov, while Pragg will take on Anish Giri.
This victory over Maxime also helped Pragg become the No. 1 ranked Indian player in the live ratings and World No. 8.
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The post Praggnanandhaa Beats Maxime, Moves to World No. 8 in Live Ratings appeared first on Sports News Portal | Revsportz.
Jammu court directs police probe into complaint against BCCI chief Mithun Manhas
A Special Railway Magistrate’s court in Jammu has directed police to conduct a preliminary inquiry into allegations against Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) president Mithun Manhas over alleged fabrication of his date of birth.
In his order, the magistrate said, “I have perused the application and other material annexed with the application and as per the provisions of BNSS before lodging or registering any cognizable offence by the concerned police, preliminary inquiry has to be conducted.”
The court directed the SHO of Police Station Nowabad, Jammu, to conduct a preliminary inquiry into the matter and submit a report before the court by September 3.
The order was passed following a complaint filed by former Joint Honorary Secretary of the J&K Cricket Association, Sudershan Mehta.
In his complaint, Mehta alleged that Manhas had forged and fabricated his date of birth to gain an advantage while playing junior-level cricket at the national level. He alleged that Manhas had furnished two different dates of birth to secure eligibility for selection in national tournaments under the sub-junior and junior categories.
The complainant further alleged that Manhas had furnished a date of birth different from the one recorded in his school records. According to information received by the complainant through email from Maharaja Hari Singh Agriculture Collegiate (MHAC) School, Nagbani, Jammu, Manhas’ date of birth is recorded as December 9, 1977.
The complainant also alleged that, according to the official website of the Delhi and District Cricket Association (DDCA), Manhas’ date of birth is October 12, 1979.
Mithun Manhas is the first BCCI president from J&K. He was elected to the post in September last year.
Italy further Cricket World Cup 2027 ambitions, qualify for Qualifier Play-Off
Dar es Salaam [Tanzania], August 19 (ANI): Italy have finished top of ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup Challenge League Group B thanks to a calm eight-wicket win over Tanzania in Dar es Salaam on Tuesday.
The side had fate in their own hands to claim league honours come the last day of their 15-match campaign across three legs, and closed out the tournament with a four-point gap over Uganda after the Cricket Cranes fell to a final-over defeat to Bahrain, as per ICC.
It was a double success for the Italians, who alongside Uganda move forward on the road to the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2027. The pair enter the Cricket World Cup Qualifier Play-off later this year, an eight-team tournament which will also include the top two teams from the Challenge League A group, and the bottom four finishers from Cricket World Cup League 2, the competition above Challenge League on the 50-over pyramid.
Having toured Hong Kong and Uganda as part of the cycle, the Italians travelled to Tanzania behind Uganda with five matchdays remaining in the competition.
A victory for the Italians over Uganda early in the final leg opened the door for the Azzurri to make a late charge, with Uganda’s defeat to Hong Kong swinging momentum further.
The Italians pounced on the opportunity, and closed out the tour undefeated, underlined with a dominant performance against the Tanzanians.
Again losing the toss like they did in their victory over Hong Kong on Monday, The Italians at one point were behind in the match after Tanzania galloped to 87/1 inside 15 overs, only for the hosts to fall to 142 all out.
It was the spin trio of Rakibul Hasan, Akash Waduwalage and Crishan Kalugamage to do the damage for Italy, taking all ten wickets for just 87 runs between them.
Waduwalage (5/21) claimed the key wicket of Dhrumit Mehta (39), and was joined by T20 World Cup hero Crishan Kalugamage (3/28) in ripping through Tanzania’s middle order.
The Italians were ruthless in reply, with brothers Justin and AJ Mosca both raising the bat for half-centuries in a partnership of 121.
Justin fell for 52, though AJ powered on to finish on 75 not out from just 71 balls, joined by skipped Harry Manenti (8 not out) to reach the target inside 26 overs.
It is now a waiting game for Italy and Uganda as they learn of their opponents in the Qualifier Play-off.
As it stands, Jersey and Kuwait hold top two spots over in the other Challenge League group with one leg to play, while in League 2, Namibia, Canada, Nepal and United Arab Emirates sit in the bottom four, with Oman (fourth) the only team that could mathematically be overtaken by the chasing pack.
Up in League 2, Scotland, USA and Netherlands are guaranteed a top four finish and will progress to the Cricket World Cup Qualifier.
The Qualifier Play-off will determine the final four spots of the Cricket World Cup Qualifier, and carries One Day International status, meaning the pair will play their first official ODIs. (ANI)
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