Rana vows to beat Sushil for mother
new delhi: An emotional Parveen Rana on Sunday vowed to beat his fierce rival Sushil Kumar in the upcoming Pro Wrestling league for his cancer-stricken mother, who he claimed was deeply hurt to learn about the out-of-the-ring attack on him by the Olympic medallist's followers. A wounded Rana is hungry for revenge against the double Olympic medallist after losing to him during trials for the Commonwealth Games. To add fuel to the fire, just after bitterly-fought bout, an ugly scuffle broke out between supporters of both the camps. "My mother is fighting against cancer right now. It's in the third stage but more than that she was really hurt to hear about the way I was attacked immediately after the bout," Rana said in a statement. "I am going to step into the PWl with her in mind, to avenge my unfair defeat," he added.
Clinical Aizawl beat Gokulam 2-0
Kozhikode: Reigning champions Aizawl FC logged home full points beating debutants Gokulam Kerala 2-0 in an away encounter of I-league, here on Sunday. Daniel Addo's own goal (45th min) and Andrei Ionescu (52nd minute) sealed it for Aizawl. Aizawl with 10 points are placed fifth in the league table. On the other hand, Bino George's boys are still placed ninth with only 4 points from 6 matches. lalram Hmunmawia put in a low cross for Kobayashi from the left-flank but eventually Daniel Addo, the Ghanaian defender of Gokulam poked it into the net in the 45th minute much to the dismay of the home team. After the changeover, Aizawl FC took only seven minutes to double the lead courtesy Ionescu's brilliant effort.
Serena loses in exhibition comeback match
ABU DHABI: Serena Williams lost in her return to tennis after giving birth in September, beaten by French Open champion Jelena Ostapenko in an exhibition Saturday and still unsure if she will defend her Australian Open title. Williams called it a "wonderful" match despite the defeat - she took the second set in a score of 6-2, 3-6 and 10-5 in a super tiebreaker. The Australian Open, the year's first Grand Slam tournament, begins January 15. "I don't know if I am totally ready to come back on the tour yet. I know that when I come back I definitely want to be competing for championships. I am definitely looking forward to getting back out there," Williams said.
Former Wi all-rounder Simmons is Afghan coach
Kabul: Former West Indies all-rounder Phil Simmons has been appointed coach of Afghanistan as the country prepares for its first Test match, it was announced on Sunday. The war-torn nation was awarded Test status in June, along with Ireland. The appointment was announced on Twitter by the Afghanistan Cricket Board. The former opening batsman and medium-fast bowler, who retired in 2002, had previous coaching spells with Zimbabwe, Ireland and the West Indies. Simmons will now join the Afghanistan squad in Dubai as it prepares for a limited-overs series against Zimbabwe in Sharjah in February.
Kapur wins third title of the year in royal cup
Pattaya: Indian golfer Shiv Kapur on Sunday produced a dramatic turnaround in the closing stages to win the Royal Cup and end the year on a high note by claiming his third Asian Tour title of 2017 here. The 35-year-old, who had just one win in almost 11 years till April this year, has now won three times in last eight months. Making the win sweeter for Kapur was that his wife Maya and five-month old daughter, Veda, were present on the 18th green.