Briefly: India beat Maldives 3-0 in SAFF U17 Championship

Thimphu

Second-half substitute Hemneichung Lunkim struck a brace as a dominant India blanked Maldives 3-0 to continue their winning streak at the SAFF U17 Championships. After Samson Ahongshangbam gave India the lead in the 14th minute, Lunkim scored in the 74th and 89th minutes in their second and final Group A match. India entrered the semifinals as the group winners.

Macau

Treesa-Gayatri advance in Macau Open badminton

Third seeds Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand overcame a stiff challenge from the Japanese pair of Akari Sato and Maya Taguchi in women’s doubles to move to the second round of the Macau Open badminton tournament. The Indian pair won 15-21 21-16 21-14 in a Round of 32 contest that lasted nearly an hour.

Vientiane (Laos)

India aim to qualify for maiden AFC U-20 Asian Cup

Defender Thomas Cherian will lead India in their bid to qualify for the AFC U-20 Asian Cup for the first time as they face Mongolia in their Group G opener here on Wednesday. The top team from each group, along with the five best second-placed teams from 10 groups, will qualify for the tournament proper. India’s next challengers will be Iran (September 27) and hosts Laos (September 29).

New Delhi

India to host Germany for two-match hockey series

The Indian men’s hockey team will take on Germany in a two-match bilateral contest at the Major Dhyan Chand National Stadium here on October 23 and 24, Hockey India announced on Tuesday. The last time India faced Germany was in the semifinals of the Paris Olympics, where the European giants emerged victorious by a 3-2 margin.

New Delhi

Korean great Lee roped in as Sindhu’s consulting coach

Double Olympics medallist shuttler PV Sindhu will have South Korean great Lee Hyun Il as her consulting coach on an interim basis as she bolstered her coaching team ahead of her anticipated return to action next month. The move came after the recent appointment of Anup Sridhar as Sindhu’s interim coach. The duo will be in Sindhu’s coaching team till December 2024. Sindhu is expected to return to competitive action at the Finland Open and Denmark Open, both in October.

lahore

Shaheen returns to Pakistan squad for 1st England Test

Fast bowler Shaheen Shah Afridi was recalled as the Pakistan selectors named a 15-member squad for the first Test against England beginning on October 7. Afridi was dropped for the second and Test against Bangladesh due to poor form.