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"India, Pakistan And...": Shoaib Akhtar Does Not Name Australia, Throws In Wildcard For Champions Trophy Semis

The Champions Trophy 2025 will be a tightly-fought tournament, with only eight sides in the whole competition and groups of four teams each. It will be the first time that Pakistan host a major ICC tournament in nearly three decades, with the last occasion coming during the 1996 World Cup. Ahead of the tournament, former Pakistan pacer Shoaib Akhtar has named the sides that he believes could very well make the semi-finals. However, Akhtar surprisingly did not specifically mention current world champions Australia.

Rohit Sharma And Co Arrive At Hotel In Bhubaneswar Ahead of 2nd ODI Against England

Team India on Friday arrived at a hotel in Bhubaneswar ahead of the 2nd ODI against England. The Men in Blue will lock horns against England in the second match of the ODI series on Sunday in Cuttuck. Talisman batter Virat Kohli, vice-captain Shubman Gill, head coach Gautam Gambhir and other team members received an arousing welcome at the hotel. Apart from the Men in Blue, England also received a warm welcome at the same hotel in Bhubaneswar. Brydon Carse, Harry Brook, and other other team members were also present with them.

Pakistan Opens Renovated Gaddafi Stadium Days Ahead Of Champions Trophy

Pakistan opened a renovated stadium for the Champions Trophy in Lahore on Friday, one of three to be used in its first major international cricket event in almost 30 years. The eight-team Champions Trophy will be staged from February 19 to March 9 in Lahore, Karachi and Rawalpindi, although arch-rival India's matches will be staged in the United Arab Emirates after they refused to play in Pakistan. Lahore's Gaddafi Stadium was reopened after a 117-day renovation during which LED floodlights, larger score screens, new hospitality boxes and upgraded seating were installed.

D Gukesh Starts Moderately In Freestyle Chess Grand Slam

World Champion D Gukesh began his campaign at the Freestyle Chess Grand Slam tour with three draws and a lone loss, signalling that he is gradually coming to terms with the new format. A brainchild of World's number one Magnus Carlsen and German entrepreneur Jan Henric Buettner, the freestyle chess event marks the beginning of what could be a permanent fixture for professional chess players despite a showdown with FIDE, the world's apex chess body. Freestyle basically is a new name given to what was known as the Fischer random chess -- the name attributed to the 11th world champion Bobby Fischer who advocated this format that has the chess pieces randomly set up at the start of the game instead of conventional chess that sees a fixed alignment of forces on both sides.

Ramkumar Ramanathan-Saketh Myneni Reach Chennai Open ATP Challenger Doubles Final

Defending champions Ramkumar Ramanathan and Saketh Myneni entered the doubles final of the Chennai Open ATP Challenger with a hard-fought win over top seeds Ray Ho and Matthew Christopher Romios in Chennai on Friday. The third seeded Indian pair registered a 7-6 (5), 7-6 (8) victory over their rivals from Taipei and Australia. They will face unseeded Japanese duo of Shintaro Mochizuki and Kaito Uesugi, a 4-6, 6-4, 10-6 winners over second seeded Indians Jeevan Nedunchezhiyan and Vijay Sundar Prashanth, for the title. Earlier, Ramkumar and Saketh saved a set point in the second set tie-break before emerging winners on their third match point.

'Was Born A Cripple, Miracle Happened At...': Shoaib Akhtar's Stunning Revelation

Former Pakistan pacer Shoaib Akhtar has made a massive revelation about his childhood. He said that he was born a cripple and was unable to walk till the age of 8. However, Akhtar added that the next year saw a huge transformation in him as he could not only walk comfortably but also started running. It is worth noting that the ex-Pakistan speedster still holds the record of bowling the fastest delivery in cricket history. He had bowled 161.3 km/h (100.2 mph) during Pakistan's 2003 Cricket World Cup match in Cape Town.

Ex-Star, Who Quit As India Coach, Set To Reunite With Rahul Dravid At Rajasthan Royals

Former India cricketer Sairaj Bahutule is set to join Rajasthan Royals as a spin bowling coach ahead of this year's Indian Premier League (IPL). Bahutule, who had a stint with RR from 2018-21, has quit from his position at the National Cricket Academy (NCA), which is now being called Centre of Excellence, in Bengaluru. He will be working alongside bowling coach Shane Bond of New Zealand and head coach Rahul Dravid. He had previously worked with Dravid when the latter was in-charge of the Indian team.

Watch: Virat Kohli, Kevin Pietersen's Animated Chat Over Knee Injury Leaves Fans Wondering

In a rare development, India batter Virat Kohli missed the first ODI against England on Thursday due to a knee injury. Kohli was seen training with a strapped knee ahead of the start of the match. Kohli then decided to inform the team management that he wasn't feeling 100% ready. Hence, Shreyas Iyer was given the nod in his place. Later during the day, Kohli was spotted engaging in an animated chat with former England batter Kevin Pietersen, who is working in the series as a commentator. The video gave fans a reason to chuckle.

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India Sport News

"India, Pakistan And...": Shoaib Akhtar Does Not Name Australia, Throws In Wildcard For Champions Trophy Semis

Rohit Sharma And Co Arrive At Hotel In Bhubaneswar Ahead of 2nd ODI Against England

Pakistan Opens Renovated Gaddafi Stadium Days Ahead Of Champions Trophy

D Gukesh Starts Moderately In Freestyle Chess Grand Slam

Ramkumar Ramanathan-Saketh Myneni Reach Chennai Open ATP Challenger Doubles Final

'Was Born A Cripple, Miracle Happened At...': Shoaib Akhtar's Stunning Revelation

Ex-Star, Who Quit As India Coach, Set To Reunite With Rahul Dravid At Rajasthan Royals

Watch: Virat Kohli, Kevin Pietersen's Animated Chat Over Knee Injury Leaves Fans Wondering