Indian skipper Rohit Sharma smashed sixes and fours to reach the double century mark. He also became the first player to score an ODI double century both as captain and non-captain.

Rohit had scored his first double century (209) which was against Australia in Bengaluru (2013), while the second (264) was against Sri Lanka at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata, in 2014.

India virtually batted Sri Lanka out of the game by scoring the highest total and surpassing the 351/5 South Africa made against Netherlands in 2011 at Mohali ground.

Another record shattering performance by Rohit was of the highest individual score at this venue, surpassing the 154 score of Virat Kohli against New Zealand last year.

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Rohit Sharma also became the only player in world cricket to hit three double centuries in List A cricket. He has also surpassed the record held by Surrey’s Alastair Brown’s who had two of them in his name. Big name players in cricket like Sachin Tendulkar, Virender Sehwag, Chris Gayle and Martin Guptill are the others who have breached the 200-run mark in 50-over cricket ODI.

Indian cricket team captain Virat Kohli and Bollywood actress Anushka Sharma — India’s most watched couples — sealed their relationship with a wedding — here amidst close family and friends.

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“Today we have promised each other to be bound in love forever. We are truly blessed to share the news with you,” Virat and Anushka posted on their social media accounts.

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It was celebration time for Chelsea fans in India as Chelsea India Supporters Club celebrated the EPL title win at the screening of their final EPL match of the season.

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A brace from C.K. Vineeth in the second period of extra time saw Bengaluru FC beat Mohun Bagan 2-0 to be crowned the Federation Cup champions at the Barabati Stadium here on Sunday.

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After both sides played out a 0-0 draw in regulation time, it took two strikes from substitute Vineeth to settle the tie. His first, came after the striker took two touches in the box before firing it low and with the help of a deflection, past Debjit Majumder in the Mohun Bagan goal in the 107th minute.

The second, on the counter, saw the striker feint twice before a shot that had too much on it for Debjit to handle as it was parried into the net in the 118th minute.

The win was a salvation for Bengaluru, who finished an underwhelming fourth in the I-League. The loss meant that Bagan ended the season without a trophy. Having finished second to Aizawl in the I-League, Bagan were playing their record 20th final in the Fed Cup.

Bengaluru thought they had their lead in the 19th minute when Udanta Singh volleyed home Eugueneson Lyngdoh’s take in stunning fashion only for the assistant referee to disallow the goal after Len Doungel, who got a start, in an off-side position, seemed to have got a bit of leg on the ball on its way in.

There was a second big chance only two minutes later when Udanta tried to cheekily flick in Lenny’s low cross but Debjit Majumder got enough of a hand to push it out for a corner.

Sandesh Jhingan made a goalline clearance from a Yusa Katsumi shot in the 31st minute in what would be Mohun Bagan’s only real chance in the first period.

While Bengaluru had nothing to complain about Udanta’s disallowed goal in the first half, they were justified in feeling robbed when Juanan Gonzalez’s legitimate prod from close in the 49th minute was wrongly flagged off side.

John Johnson headed a free kick from Udanta across the face of the goal and the Blues’ Spanish defender was well on side as he put the ball at the back of the net only for Bengaluru celebrations to be cut short by a flag that should have stayed down.

Things soon got frenetic at both ends. Amrinder Singh pulled off a blinder of a save, getting his fingertips on a goal-bound rasping strike from Balwant Singh.

Bengaluru soon answered with a counter. Set up by Harmanjot Khabra, Udanta spotted Majumder charging off his line and lobbed to ‘keeper only to see the ball bounce wide.

But the young winger, who was having a fantastic night, ended up pulling a muscle in the bargain, forcing Roca to bring on Vineeth.

Bagan then had a flurry of corners in added time of the second half but the Bengaluru defence did enough to see the danger away and take the game to extra time.

IANS

German tennis player Alexander Zverev rolled to a 6-4, 6-3 upset victory over Serbia’s Novak Djokovic in the Italian Open final, winning his first Masters 1000 title at the Foro Italico here on Sunday.

Djokovic was hoping to win his 31st ATP World Tour Masters 1000 title in Italy, but the four-time champion in Rome collided with rising star Zverev, who clinched his first big title on Sunday, reports Efe.

Djokovic confirmed in his post-match press conference that former American world No. 1 Andre Agassi would be his new coach at the French Open, the season’s second Grand Slam tournament, which starts on May 28.

The world No. 2 said he had reached an agreement with Agassi to start working together during Roland Garros.

“We are both excited to work together and see where it takes us,” the Serbian star, who has won 12 Grand Slam titles, said.

“We don’t have any long-term commitment. It’s just us trying to get to know each other in Paris a little bit. He will not stay the whole tournament. He’s going to stay only to a certain time, and then we’ll see after that what’s going to happen. We’ll see what the future brings,” the 29-year-old Djokovic, who fell out of the top spot in the ATP rankings in November, said.

Ahead of the Madrid Open earlier this month, Djokovic, who turns 30 on Monday, parted ways with long-time coach Marian Vajda. He split with Boris Becker at the end of 2016.

“Andre is someone that I have tremendous respect for as a person and as a player,” Djokovic said.

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Mumbai Indians defeated Rising Pune Supergiant (RPS) in a low-scoring final to win the Indian Premier League (IPL) title here on Sunday.

In a match that went right down to the last ball, Mumbai registered a one-run victory in front of packed stands at the Rajiv Gandhi International stadium.

This is Mumbai’s third IPL title.

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Chasing a target of 130 runs, Pune could only manage to post 128/6 in their 20 overs.

Australian fast bowler Mitchel Johnson was the most successful for Mumbai with figures of 3/26, while young pacer Jasprit Bumrah also played a crucial role, returning figures of 26/2 in four excellent overs.

Veteran Sri Lankan pacer Lasith Malinga also bowled well and was unlucky not to manage a wicket. He conceeded just 21 runs in his four overs.

Pune skipper Steven Smith led from the front scoring a fighting half-century in a losing cause. He notched up 51 runs off 50 deliveries with two boundaries and an equal number of sixes before falling in the last over.

Pune started off on a shaky note when Bumrah trapped Rahul Tripathi leg before. Ajinkya Rahane and Smith tried to rebuild the innings with a 54-run partnership before Kieron Pollard pulled off a superb catch at long on to send the captain back to the pavilion.

With the Mumbai bowlers maintaining a tight line, Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Smith found the going tough and could only add 27 runs between them in as many balls.

Dhoni scored 10 runs in 13 balls before falling to a poor shot in the 17th over, slashing a Bumrah delivery which was slightly outside off-stump but only managed an easy top edge to wicket-keeper Parthiv Patel. His departure seemed to put the pressure on the Pune batsmen.

Malinga conceded just five runs in the 18th over and Bumrah bowled another miserly over in the 19th to put pressure. With 11 runs needed off the final over, Manoj Tiwary started with a boundary to square leg off Johnson but an attempted smash into the stands off the very next ball saw him caught at long on by Pollard.

Smith fell on third ball, caught by Ambati Rayudu at the cover boundary. Two runs came off the next ball but with four needed off the last ball, Daniel Christian was run out sending the Mumbai players into wild celebrations.

Earlier, braces by bowlers Jaydev Unadkat, Adam Zampa and Christian enabled Pune to restrict Mumbai to 129 for eight.

Mumbai’s top and middle order batsmen put up a horrific show against the disciplined bowling from Pune and the former were left reeling at 79/7 in the 15th over. All-rounder Krunal Pandya’s 47 off 38 deliveries pulled Mumbai out of the hole.

Opting to bat, Mumbai had a disastrous start as left-arm medium pacer Unadkat (2/19) removed Parthiv Patel (4) and Lendl Simmons (3) in the third over, reducing them to 8/2.

Mumbai skipper Rohit Sharma (24) and Rayudu (12) then weathered the storm briefly but the Pune bowlers continued to keep it tight. Young off-spinner Washington Sundar continued to be impressive, giving away only 13 runs in his four overs.

The partnership lasted for 33 runs as Rayudu was caught short of the crease while taking a single in the eighth over.

Mumbai’s batting ran into further trouble when Rohit and Pollard (7) fell to Australian leg-spinner Zampa (2/32) in the 11th over to be left at 65/5. Rohit pulled a half-pitched ball to Thakur at deep mid-wicket, while Pollard offered an easy catch to pouch for Tiwary at long-on.

After Zampa, Christian (2/34) removed all-rounder Hardik Pandya (10) in the 14th over, while in the next, Karn Sharma, a handy low-order batsman, was run out at 1, to leave Mumbai at 79/7.

Later, Krunal and Mitchell Johnson (13 not out) shared a strong 50-run partnership to take Mumbai to 129/8.

Rising Pune Supergiant (RPS) on Sunday cemented their place in the Indian Premier League (IPL) play-offs thrashing Kings XI Punjab by nine wickets at the Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium here on Sunday.

The Pune victory came off a superb performance by their bowlers which was later complemented by their top-rung batsmen to overhaul the meagre 74-run target set by a hapless Punjab.

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Pune now have 18 points in 14 matches and are at the second spot. They displaced Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), who slipped to the fourth spot with 16 points.

Mumbai Indians sit atop the table with 20 points and Sunrisers Hyderabad are at third spot with 17 points.

Chasing 73 posted by Punjab, openers Ajinkya Rahane (34 not out) and Rahul Tripathi (28) forged a 41-run partnership before the latter was dismissed by spinner Axar Patel. Tripathi’s 20-ball knock was laced with four boundaries and one six.

Unfazed, skipper Steven Smith (15 not out) and Rahane then completed the formalities without any hiccups for Pune to overhaul the Punjab score in 12 overs.

Earlier, Riding on some disciplined bowling, Pune restricted Punjab to 73 runs. Axar Patel (22) and Wriddhiman Saha (13) were the major contributors for Punjab’s cause.

Punjab never looked in contention as they started their innings on a poor note. Martin Guptill (0) was dismissed by Jaydev Unadkat on the very first ball of the innings caught at short cover by Manoj Tiwary.

After adding 19 runs to the score with Saha, incoming batsman Shaun Marsh (10) was also dismissed by Daniel Christian in the fourth over and the scoreboard read 19/2.

Punjab’s middle-order suffered a collapse with Eoin Morgan (4), who was playing in place of Manan Vohra, Rahul Tewatia (4) and skipper Glenn Maxwell (0) failing to step up to the occasion. They were all sent packing before seven overs had been bowled.

Saha, who seemed good at the crease, could not handle the pressure and was dismissed by Christian in the 10th over.

Axar Patel, however, showed his temperament and slammed a few boundaries before he was dismissed by Christian in the 12th over.

Lower-order batsmen Swapnil Singh (10), Mohit Sharma (6) and Ishant Sharma (0) were also dismissed in the next three overs to restrict Punjab for 73 runs in 15.5 overs.

For Pune, Shardul Thakur scalped three wickets while Unadkat, Adam Zampa and Christian took two wickets each.

IANS

Real Madrid booked a place in the Champions League final despite their 1-2 defeat in the semi-final return leg to Atletico Madrid at the Vicente Calderon stadium here.

A close range goal from Isco on the break of half-time was vital in easing Real Madrid into the final on 4-2 aggregate after a blistering start by their rivals, who won 2-1 here on Wednesday night.

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Knowing they needed at least three goals to get back from their 3-0 first leg defeat, Atletico proposed a physical affair and Danilo and Stefan Savic were booked in the first five minutes. Before the half-time break, Diego Godin, Gabi and Sergio Ramos had joined them in the referee’s book, all for protesting as the referee let several tough challenges go unpunished.

By then Atletico were 2-0 ahead. Saul Niguez headed the home side ahead from a Koke corner in the 11th minute before Antoine Griezmann doubled Atletico’s lead six minutes later after Rafael Varene had fouled Fernando Torres in the Real Madrid penalty area.

To their credit Real Madrid remained calm and proceeded to dominate possession for the rest of the half, frustrating the home players and taking the sting out of Atletico’s attacking thrust. Isco got a vital away goal three minutes before half-time after brilliant work from Karim Benzema in twisting his way past two defenders on the goal-line before pulling the ball back for Tony Kroos. Although Jan Oblak saved the German’s shot, Isco was on hand to score from close range.

Real looked to continue their control of midfield in the second half and Atletico coach Diego Simeone responded with a double change replacing Torres and Gimenez with Thomas Partey and Kevin Gameiro.

Keylor Navas made a double save on 65 minutes to deny Yannick Carrasco’s low shot and Antoine Griezmann’s header from the rebound.

Luka Modric then had a goal ruled out due to a questionable positional offside from Ronaldo before Navas saved low on his near post to deny Griezmann.

As the players tired the game opened up and only a late challenge from Thomas denied Benzema, while Ramos denied Griezmann almost on the goal-line.

The game ended in the middle of a tremendous thunderstorm and despite their side’s exit, the home fans cheered their players off the pitch. They knew Atletico had tried everything possible, but the damage had been done eight days before in the Bernabeu stadium.

IANS

Young Shreyas Iyer missed a magnificent century by four runs but that was enough for Delhi Daredevils to edge past Gujarat Lions by two wickets in an inconsequential Indian Premier League (IPL) clash at the Green Park Stadium here on Wednesday.

If Rishabh Pant and Sanju Samson demolished the Gujarat Lions in their away encounter at the Ferozeshah Kotla in Delhi last Thursday, it was Iyer, who almost single-handedly tamed the Lions in their own den with a 57-ball 96, his highest IPL score.

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Languishing at the bottom of the IPL standings and already out of contention for the play-offs, both the sides had nothing to lose in the contest. With the win, Delhi rose to sixth while Gujarat are at the penultimate spot in the eight-team table.

Chasing a mammoth 196, Delhi lost half their side for 105 runs before Iyer and Australian Pat Cummins’ cameo (24 of 13 balls) guided the visitors to the win. Gujarat on the other hand, were electric on the field with skipper Suresh Raina and all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja, accounting for three brilliant run-outs of the in-form Pant (4), Marlon Samuels (1) and Corey Anderson (6).

Delhi failed to get the momentum with the run-outs having lost opener Samson, bowled by left-arm pacer Pradeep Sangwan after scoring a 7-ball 10 before losing Pant immediately off an excellent throw at the stumps from Raina.

Karun Nair (30) and Iyer then stabilised the innings with a 57-run third wicket stand before the strategic time-out once again did the trick for the home side, in the form of Nair’s dismissal. Nair, after facing 15 balls and helping the ball to the boundary on five occasions and once over it, lofted a slower delivery from Australian James Faulkner only for Dwayne Smith to take a reverse-cupped catch at cover.

Jadeja then made his presence felt, effecting two quick run-outs, first of West Indian Samuels and then New Zealander Anderson to make things worse for the visitors. Tottering at 105/5, medium pacer Dhawal Kulkarni added to Delhi’s frustration with the wicket of Carlos Bratwaite (11), who got a top edge for the bowler to take a simple catch at cover.

It was after Iyer and Cummins came together to milk 29 runs off 10 balls when Delhi could smell the victory. Iyer first dispatched Sangwan for two consecutive boundaries and then meted out the same treatment to Kulkarni.

Cummins too joined the party, using the long handle to good effect as the Australian raised a valuable 61-run stand for the seventh wicket with Iyer to take the visitors within sniffing distance of a win. Cummins, in his attempt to get to the target quickly, lofted Faulkner to long-on only for Smith to take a comfortable catch. The Australian’s 13-ball knock was laced with two boundaries and a massive six off the same bowler.

With 14 needed off seven deliveries, tailender Mohammed Shami (4 not out) managed to push one to the boundary to reduce the margin before Basil Thampi in his second delivery of the final over, got one in the blockhole to blow Iyer’s middle stump. Leg-spinner Amit Mishra (8 not out) then whacked two consecutive fours to seal the deal in favour of Delhi.

Earlier, Australian Aaron Finch’s flashy 39-ball 69, laced with six fours and four sixes helped Gujarat Lions recover from the early jolts and post a mammoth 195/5. Finch’s 92-run fourth wicket stand with wicketkeeper-batsman Dinesh Karthik (40) helped the Lions recover after losing the early wickets of opener Smith (8), Raina (6) and Ishan Kishan (34).

Put in to bat, Gujarat found themselves reeling at 56/3 before Karthik and Finch began the recovery sensibly, taking the odd singles and helping the bad balls to the boundary as the run rate dropped a bit midway into the innings.

Delhi found it tough to break the partnership with both the right-handers stepping up the gas to race to 148/3 by the 16th over, before West Indian Brathwaite managed to pack the Tamil Nadu-born stumper, who had faced 28 balls by then and struck four fours and a six.

Thereafter, Finch, who by now had reached his 50 off 32 balls, struck a few blows to add 32 runs for the fifth wicket with Ravindra Jadeja (13 not out) before Shami’s full delivery blew the Australian’s middle stump.

Towards the end, Faulkner (14 not out) and Jadeja added 15 runs as the home side milked 61 runs off the final five overs.

IANS

After Canadian tennis player Eugenie Bouchard knocked Maria Sharapova out of the Madrid Masters in a three set marathon, the 23-year-old explained the importance of her win against a player she had accused of cheating.

The victory on Monday night saw Sharapova crash out of the second round as she continues her return to the WTA circuit following her suspension after being detected for using meldonium during the 2016 Australian Open, reports Xinhua news agency.

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Bouchard had been critical of the Russian in the past, even going as far as calling her a “cheat”, and admits she viewed the win as justification for her words. “I was extra motivated, I had never beaten her before and there were other circumstances,” said the Canadian in a press conference. “A lot of players had come up to me in private to wish me luck, players who I usually don’t speak to. And I also received a lot of messages from people in the world of tennis,” she said. 

The Canadian believes that these shows of support make it clear that Sharapova’s return is not popular with many of her peers. “It shows that the majority of the people have the same opinion that I have and although they are worried about speaking out in public, they will speak in private. I received a lot of support from them and that is why I was so inspired,” she commented after her 7-5, 2-6, 6-4 victory.

IANS