Oz cricketer Faulkner says he is not gay

MELBOURNE

Australian all-rounder James Faulkner has said that he is not gay, and Cricket Australia has offered an apology for any “unintended offence” after his social media post with “boyfriend” Robert Jubb led to speculation that he is homosexual. The cricketer, who turned 29 on Monday, posted a picture of himself with his housemate Jubb and his mother Roslyn Faulkner, celebrating his birthday. The hashtag #togetherfor5years led to belief that Faulkner was revealing that he was gay as he described Jubb as his boyfriend in the post. The post went viral and led to several fans congratulating him for coming out of the closet. However, he clarified on Tuesday that he is not homosexual. “There seems to be a misunderstanding about my post from last night, I am not gay, however, it has been fantastic to see the support from and for the LBGT community,” he posted. Cricket Australia offered an apology for the misunderstanding that was created by Faulkner’s post and insisted that the player never intended it to be a joke.

New Delhi

Chopra nominated for Khel Ratna; Toor, Arpinder for Arjuna 

Javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra has been nominated for the prestigious Rajiv Khel Ratna Award by the Athletics Federation of India. He was also nominated for the Khel Ratna Award last year but was considered only for the Arjuna Award. Meanwhile, national athletics head coach Bahadur Singh said Chopra should not be rushed into competition following his elbow injury and should skip the World Championships if he is not fully fit by then. Five other athletes have been nominated for the Arjuna Awards. They are  Asian Games gold winners Tejinder Pal Singh Toor (shot put), Arpinder Singh (triple jump), Manjit Singh (800m) and Swapna Barman (heptathlon) and Dutee Chand (100m and 200m).

London

Oz-born cricketer gets 5-yr rape sentence 

An Australian-born cricketer who raped a woman he found “dozing” in his teammate’s bedroom was jailed for five years by an English court. Alex Hepburn, 23, was convicted following an attack that took place during the first night of a sexual conquest “game” he helped set up on a WhatsApp group. — Agencies