Sport
This has been the best World Cup group stage ever: FIFA president
FIFA president Gianni Infantino said this week he is thrilled with the opening round of matches in this World Cup which has thrown up some surprising results including some major upsets.
“I have seen all the matches, and this has been the best group stage of a World Cup ever. The matches have been of great quality in beautiful stadiums,” said Infantino.
“There are no more small teams and no more big teams. The level is very equal,” he said adding “this shows that football is really becoming truly global.”
According to him, the knockout stage matches had “over 51,000 on average [spectators]. Record-breaking figures on TV – we already had over two billion viewers.
In addition, he said FIFA expects “to reach the five billion [TV] viewers [mark] around the world,” before the tournament ends and is also hoping that the on-field action will continue to be as riveting as the first 56 games.
Down to the final 8
With the quarter-finals almost upon us, the 2022 World Cup has entered its crunch stage and a host of major nations have been sent packing and only eight teams are left.
Fans of Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi will meanwhile be pleased to see the two icons are still in it - meaning a showdown between the two greats is still a possibility.
The eight teams that are still in the running for this year’s title are England, France, Netherlands, Argentina, Croatia, Brazil, Morocco and Portugal.
England defeated Senegal to progress and set up a meeting with France, who beat Poland in the last 16. The Netherlands overcame the USA and will play Lionel Messi's Argentina in their next match.
Croatia will face Brazil in the quarter-final while Morocco, who sprung an upset on Spain, will face Portugal, who coasted past Switzerland.
This next stage will be played on Friday and Saturday.
Croatia will take on Brazil in Friday’s early match, while Netherlands meets Argentina later in the day. On Saturday, it’s Morocco up against Portugal and then later that day England tackles France.
Sport
Afghanistan clinches ODI series victory against Zimbabwe
Afghanistan's national cricket team triumphed over Zimbabwe by 8 wickets in the third and final One-Day International (ODI) to claim the series victory.
In a dominant bowling display, Afghanistan dismissed Zimbabwe for just 127 runs in 30.1 overs. The Afghan batsmen then chased down the target comfortably in 26.5 overs, losing only 2 wickets along the way.
The standout performer of the match was Allah Mohammad Ghazanfar, who took a remarkable 5 wickets, while Rashid Khan supported with 3 wickets. Azmatullah Omarzai and Farid Ahmad each claimed 1 wicket.
The first match of the series was abandoned due to rain, but Afghanistan bounced back strongly in the second match, securing a commanding 232-run victory.
This series win follows Afghanistan's earlier success in the T20I series against Zimbabwe, further cementing their dominance in international cricket.
Sport
Bangla Tigers lift Lanka T10 Super League title
Player of the match and player of the series was Titan’s skipper Dasun Shanaka.
Hambantota Bangla Tigers beat favorites Jaffna Titans by 26 runs in Thursday’s Lanka T10 Super League final at the Pallekele Stadium in Kandy.
The Tigers produced a fine all-round performance to beat the Titans, who had won all their matches in the lead up to the final.
Player of the match and player of the series was Titan’s skipper Dasun Shanaka.
Hambantota Bangla Tigers, put into bat first, posted 133 for seven from their allotted 10 overs through some useful contributions from their top order batsmen.
The openers Mohammad Shahzad and Kusal Perera added 35 runs from 2.4 overs before they suffered a middle order collapse and reached 59 for three at the halfway stage of the innings.
However, skipper Dasun Shanaka and Shevon Daniel revived the innings with a fourth-wicket partnership of 44 runs in three overs.
Shanaka made 21 with two sixes and two boundaries while Daniel struck 26 with one six and three boundaries before Kennar Lewis and Dhananjaya Lakshan added the finishing touches.
Chasing 133 runs for victory, Jaffna Titans lost wickets at regular intervals and they eventually finished at 107 for six despite a fighting unbeaten half century from middle order batsman Tom Abell.
Richard Gleeson wrecked the Hambantota Bangla Tigers’ innings with excellent figures of three wickets for 21 while Shanaka captured two wickets for four runs.
Sport
Afghanistan crush Zimbabwe by 232 runs in second ODI
Afghanistan defeated Zimbabwe by 232 runs in the second ODI on Thursday to secure a 1-0 lead in the three-match series.
Sent to bat first by Zimbabwe who won the toss, Afghanistan posted 286-6 in Harare.
Sediqullah Atal scored 104, his first hundred in an international match. Abdul Malik followed with 84.
In reply, Zimbabwe scored 54 runs before being bowled out in the 17.5 overs.
Allah Mohammad Ghazanfar and Naweed Zadran took three wickets each. Fazlullah Farooqi picked up two wickets and Azmatullah Omarzai one.
This was the second match of the ODI series between Afghanistan and Zimbabwe. The first was abandoned due to rain.
The third and final game of the series will be played on Saturday.
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