HOCKEY
India Sub Junior Men National C’ship: Bihar thrashes Tripura 19-0
Jammu & Kashmir, Bihar, Uttarakhand, Bengal, Gujarat, and Kerala emerged victorious on day two of the 15th India Sub Junior Men National Championship on Tuesday.
In the opening match of the day, J&K edged past Puducherry with a narrow 1–0 win in a Pool A encounter of Division ‘C’. Captain Prabvir Singh Bali (53’) scored the decisive goal in the final quarter, sealing a hard-fought victory for his side.
The second fixture witnessed a dominant display by Bihar, overwhelming Tripura with a staggering 19–0 win in Pool B of Division ‘C’. Deepu Vishwakarma (3’) opened the scoring early, setting the tone for a goal fest. Satyam Kumar Pande (5’, 40’, 60’) and Amritanshu Pandey (36’, 42’, 43’, 47’) both netted hat-tricks, while contributions also came from Raj Pandey (8’, 13’, 33’), Nikhil Navin Kumar (8’, 26’), Laksh Kumar (16’), Suman Kumar (29’, 58’, 60’), Chhotu Kumar (49’), and Ranjan Ashish (50’).
In the third match, Uttarakhand defeated Mizoram 5–1 in another Pool B clash of Division ‘C’. Skipper Sarthak Mahar (18’) opened the scoring for Uttarakhand, with Vikash Kashyap (24’), Saurav Tamta (34’), Ankit (40’), and Manish Singh Kunwar (43’) adding to the tally. Mizoram Captain Joseph Malsawmtluanga (50’) managed a late consolation goal.
In Division ‘B’, Bengal secured a 2–0 win over Arunachal in Pool A, courtesy of goals from Munna Kumar Singh (37’) and Captain Suvam Patra (56’).
The fifth match saw Gujarat edge past Chhattisgarh 2–1, with Alpeshbhai Vala (23’, 36’) scoring a brace. Aadrsh Raj Singh (50’) pulled one back for Chhattisgarh, but it wasn’t enough.
Kerala put up a clinical performance, defeating Himachal 6–1 in Pool B of Division ‘B’. Goals came from Rohit Baxla (26’, 36’), Nidhin T (28’), Raju Bangari (34’, 44’), and Aman Kishor Lakra (55’), while Shivansh (46’) scored the only goal for Himachal.
The final match of the day will feature Manipur taking on Andhra Pradesh.
Day 2 Results
Jammu & Kashmir defeated Le Puducherry Hockey 1-0 in Division ‘C’
Hockey Association of Bihar defeated Tripura 19-0 in Division ‘C’
Hockey Uttarakhand defeated Hockey Mizoram 5-1 in Division ‘C’
Hockey Bengal defeated Hockey Arunachal 2-0 in Division ‘B’
Hockey Gujarat beat Chhattisgarh Hockey 2-1 in Division ‘B’
Kerala Hockey defeat Hockey Himachal 6-1 in Division ‘B’
– Team Sportstar
TENNIS
IC Rod Laver junior challenge: India loses Spain 2-4 before defeating South Africa 5-1
Defending champion India struggled to assert its supremacy as it lost to host Spain 2-4, after having lost to Italy by a similar margin earlier, in the IC Rod Laver junior challenge tennis event in Barcelona.
India did beat South Africa 5-1, but found itself fourth among the sixth teams. Spain led the table with three wins from three matches.
Except for competing in the girls doubles match against South Africa, Maaya Rajeshwaran was unable to serve the team owing to a shoulder injury. That took the sting off India’s challenge.
India was scheduled to play Argentina and Mexico in the last two league matches. The team with the maximum number of matches won would emerge the champion.
The results:
Spain bt India 4-2 (Maxi Carrascosa bt Samarth Sahita 7-6, 6-2; Yago Castellanos lost to Araadhya Kshitij 2-6, 2-6; Gabriela Paun bt Saanvi Misra 6-0, 6-1; Celia Anson lost to Rishitha Basireddy 4-6, 6-3, [4-10]; Carrascosa & Castellanos bt Samarth & Araadhya 7-6(4), 6-3; Gabriela & Celia bt Saanvi & Rishitha 6-2, 6-1).
India bt South Africa 5-1 (Samarth Sahita bt Connor Doig 6-2, 6-4; Araadhya Kshitij bt Jayden Summers 6-1, 6-4; Saanvi Misra lost to Morgan Jordaan 0-6, 2-6; Rishitha Basireddy bt Meri Sandembergh 6-1, 6-2; Samarth & Aaradhya bt Conor & Jayden 6-2, 6-4; Maaya Rajeshwaran & Rishitha Basireddy bt Morgan & Meri 5-7, 6-4, [11-9]).
– Kamesh Srinivasan
Jaya enters quarterfinals at AITA ranking tournament
Jaya Kapoor beat Jennifer Luikham 6-2, 6-4 in the women’s pre-quarterfinals of the HPCL Mittal Rs.200,000 AITA ranking tennis tournament at the CLTA Complex on Tuesday.
In the men’s section, Shanker Heisnam fought his way past Smit Patel 5-7, 6-4, 6-2 to enter the quarterfinals.
The results (pre-quarterfinals):
Men: Sarthak Suden bt Lokesh Pun 6-4, 5-7, 6-0; Svarmanyu Singh w.o. Shaurya Bhardwaj; SM Aadithya bt Jatin Nain 7-5, 6-4; Parv Nage bt Ashwajit Senjam 6-0, 6-1; Ricky Chaudhary bt Bikramjeet Chawla 6-4, 4-2 (retired); Jagmeet Singh bt Lakshit Soood 6-3, 6-2; Shanker Heisnam bt Smit Patel 5-7, 6-4, 6-2; Arjun Rathi bt Yashasvi Balhara 6-2, 7-5.
Women: Sahira Singh bt Ruma Gaikaiwari 6-1, 6-0; Jaya Kapoor bt Jennifer Luikham 6-2, 6-4; Jeetesh Kumari bt Aditi Tyagi 6-7(4), 6-3, 6-4; Mahika Khanna bt S Verma 6-3, 7-5; Divya Bhardwaj bt Durganshi Kumar 6-0, 6-3; Riya Sachdeva bt Lakshmi Gowda 6-3, 6-2; Manshi Singh bt Shagun Kumari 7-6(5), 6-4; Tejasvi Dabas bt Rhea Arora 6-3, 6-2.
– Kamesh Srinivasan
INDIAN FOOTBALL
AIFF Finance Committee approves accounts for Benevolence and Pension funds
The All India Football Federation (AIFF) has decided to create a Benevolence Fund to support individuals associated with football — including ex-Players, coaches, referees, match officials, support staff, and even football journalists. The fund will provide a one-time grant for medical purposes, with terms and conditions to be set by the relevant committees.
To initiate the fund, AIFF president Kalyan Chaubey announced a personal contribution of Rs. 1,00,001, which was matched by Vice President Shri NA Haris, bringing the initial total to Rs. 2,00,002.
AIFF will also contribute an amount of Rs. 5,00,000 to the Benevolence Fund, thereby raising the initial corpus to Rs. 7,00,002. Furthermore, the AIFF will proactively explore avenues to enhance the fund over time, including the organisation of charity matches and mobilising support from other potential sources of revenue and partnerships.
In addition to the Benevolence Fund, Chaubey proposed the establishment of a Pension Fund for AIFF employees who have served 20 years or more and have retired from the organisation at the age of 60 or later (the terms and conditions will be set by the relevant committees).
– Team Sportstar
East Bengal FC signs Moroccan forward Hamid Ahadad
Moroccan forward has joined East Bengal FC.
| Photo Credit:
EBFC Media
Moroccan forward has joined East Bengal FC.
| Photo Credit:
EBFC Media
East Bengal FC confirmed the signing of Moroccan national team forward Hamid Ahadad on Tuesday for the 2025-26 season, with an option to extend for an additional year. Ahadad will wear jersey number 17.
A versatile attacker capable of playing as a centre-forward or winger, Ahadad has played across top-tier African leagues. He joins EBFC from Morocco’s Botola Pro Inwi side Maghreb de Fès, where he played 1,432 minutes across 19 matches, contributing 3 goals and 3 assists last season.
In 162 Botola Pro Inwi matches overall, the 30-year-old has logged 45 goals and 14 assists.
– Team Sportstar
TENNIS
Mukund, Karan enter pre-quarterfinals in Astana
Qualifier S Mukund beat fourth seed Saba Purtseladze of Georgia 6-4, 6-4 in the first round of the $60,000 Challenger tennis tournament in Astana, Kazakhstan, on Tuesday.
Mukund was joined in the pre-quarterfinals by Karan Singh who eased past Egor Gerasimov 7-5, 6-1.
The results:
$60,000 Challenger, Astana, Kazakhstan
Singles (first round): Karan Singh bt Egor Gerasimov 7-5, 6-1; S Mukund bt Saba Purtseladze (Geo) 6-4, 6-4.
$30,000 ITF men, Brazzaville, Congo
Singles (first round): Stephane Kamendje (Can) bt Ravishankar Sathiyaraj 6-3, 6-1; Dev Javia bt Vatsal Manikantan 6-2, 6-1; Constantin Kouzmine (Fra) bt Rishikrishna Ayyappan 6-0, 6-2; Darrshan Suresh (Mas) bt Chinmaya Dev Chauhan 6-3, 6-1.
Doubles (pre-quarterfinals): Matteo Covato (Ita) & Digvijay Pratap Singh bt Laurence Teunissen (Ned) & Alexander Zgirovsky (Blr) 7-6(5), 6-4.
$15,000 ITF men, Nakhon Pathom, Thailand
Singles (first round): Manish Sureshkumar bt Ofek Shimanov (Isr) 6-1, 6-4; Sidharth Rawat bt Akira Santillan (Aus) 6-6 (retired); Soonwoo Kwon (Kor) bt Vishnu Vardhan 6-3, 4-6, 7-6(1).
Doubles (pre-quarterfinals): Congsup Congcar & Natthayut Nithithananont (Tha) bt Rishabdev Raman & Keerthiassan Suresh 6-3, 6-4.
$15,000 ITF men, Bali, Indonesia
Singles (first round): Yuto Oki (Jpn) bt Parth Aggarwal 6-1, 7-5.
Doubles (pre-quarterfinals): Nathan Barki (Ina) & Alexander Chang (USA) bt Sajal Kesarwani & Vivek Kolluru 6-0, 6-3.
$30,000 ITF women, Nakhon Pathom, Thailand
Singles (first round): Miho Kuramochi (Jpn) bt Zeel Desai 6-0, 6-2.
Doubles (pre-quarterfinals): Shrivalli Bhamidipaty & Vaidehee Chaudhari bt Kamonwan Kornsila & Tanuchaporn Yongmod (Tha) 6-4, 6-1.
$30,000 ITF women, Roehampton, Britain
Singles (first round): Yuriko Miyazaki (GBR) bt Humera Baharmus 6-0, 6-2.
$15,000 ITF women, Monastir, Tunisia
Doubles (pre-quarterfinals): Valeria Bhunu (Zim) & Tanisha Kashyap bt Kenza Abdelhafidh & Sarra Fredj (Tun) 6-0, 6-0.
-Team Sportstar
TENNIS
Nagal moves to second round of ATP Challenger in Germany
Indian tennis player Sumit Nagal moved to the second round of the Platzmann Open with a straight set win over Spain’s Carlos Sanchez Jover in Hagen, Germany on Tuesday.
The 307-ranked Indian defeated the higher-ranked Jover 6-2, 6-2 in the opening round of the ATP Challenger event which is being played on clay.
He will take on 17-year-old German tennis player Niels McDonald in the round of 16 on Wednesday.
Nagal entered the tournament on the back of two semifinal finishes in the Triste Challenger and Tampere Open earlier this month.
PTI