Fiorentina fires manager Montella
Florence: Fiorentina announced on Saturday that they had fired coach Vincenzo Montella with the club struggling in 14th in Serie A. “Vincenzo Montella has been relieved of his duties as head coach of the first team,” club announced on its website. “The decision was taken following long & detailed analysis of the team's performances and results.” The club promised a new coach would be announced “in next few days”.
Pattinson to play in Boxing Day Test
Melbourne: Australia head coach Justin Langer has all but confirmed that right-arm pacer James Pattinson will feature in the playing XI for the second Test against New Zealand beginning Boxing Day at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG). “I am really looking forward to seeing Patto bowl and bowl well in this Boxing Day Test, which is his home ground as well,” cricket.com.au quoted Langer.
FC Goa eye top spot in ISL
Margao: FC Goa will be out to reclaim their spot at the top of ISL when they take on Odisha FC today. Goa are currently in second spot with 15 points from eight games, while Odisha are seventh with nine points. It will be an interesting tussle in the middle of the park between two sets of technically-proficient players. Goa are coming off a confidence-boosting 2-1 win over ATK in the previous game.
Jeremy smashes Youth World record
Doha: Youth Olympic Gold medallist weightlifter Jeremy Lalrinnunga went on a record-breaking spree, claiming three world marks in a remarkable performance, on the way to a Silver in the men's 67kg category at the 6th Qatar Int’l Cup. In a power-packed performance, the 17-year-old smashed his own Youth World and Asian record in snatch, clean and jerk and total lift with an effort of 306kg (140kg+166kg) to win the Silver medal. Jeremy broke 27 records in total all under his name, combining national and international marks.
Harinder wins HCL-SRFI India Tour
Mumbai: Indian squash player Harinder Pal Singh Sandhu clinched the men's title while Hana Ramadan of Egypt won the women's crown in the third leg of the HCL-SRFI India Tour. Harinder defeated Tomotaka Endo of Japan 3-0 in a match that lasted for 30 minutes, while Hana beat England's Lucy Turmel 3-1 in the women's final.
Martinez wins WBC flyweight crown
Los Angeles: Mexico's Julio Cesar Martinez stopped Nicaragua's Cristofer Rosales in the ninth round to win the vacant World Boxing Council flyweight title. Martinez improved to 15-1 with his 12th victory inside the distance while Rosales fell to 29-5 with the loss at Phoenix, Arizona. After dropping his 2015 pro debut, Martinez has won 15 fights in a row, although he needed two tries to claim the WBC flyweight crown.
PCB ropes in curator Atkinson
Karachi: Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has hired the services of experienced curator Andy Atkinson to review the state of pitches in the country and help local curators prepare sporting pitches. The PCB in its bid to improve its cricket structure will also revamp the National Cricket Academy in Lahore and turn it into a high-performance center.