Kidambi ousts Sen; Sameer, Prannoy also advance

Paris: Kidambi Srikanth prevailed over Lakshya Sen, winning 21-18 21-18, to advance to the men’s singles second round of the French Open Super 750 badminton tournament. Sameer Verma registered a 21-15 21-23 22-20 win over Anthony Sinisuka Ginting of Indonesia. HS Prannoy also made it to the second round after a 21-16 16-21 21-16 win over Liew Daren of Malaysia. In the men’s doubles, MR Arjun and Dhruv Kapila lost in the first round.

Bengaluru

U Mumba, Warriors register wins in Pro Kabaddi

Raiders Guman Singh and Heidarali Ekrami dished out superlative performances to help U Mumba beat Gujarat Giants 37-29 in the Pro Kabaddi League. In the day’s other match, Bengal Warriors beat Dabang Delhi 35-30.

Doha

Qatar scraps Covid entry test requirement for WC fans

World Cup host Qatar has scrapped a requirement for visitors to obtain a negative Covid-19 test before departing for the Gulf Arab state, its health ministry said today. Previously, Qatar had told fans attending the World Cup they must show proof of a negative COVID-19 test regardless of their vaccination status.

Santander (Spain)

Shuttler Unnati enters pre-quarters of junior Worlds

India’s Unnati Hooda progressed to the women’s singles pre-quarterfinals but top seed Anupama Upadhyay bowed out of the BWF Junior World Badminton Championships. The 14-year-old Unnati, ranked fifth in the world junior rankings, defeated Italy’s Gianna

Stiglich 21-11 21-7.

Paris

Messi and Mbappe score twice as PSG thrash Maccabi

Paris St Germain’s Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappe both scored twice, with Neymar also on target, as the French club’s fearsome attack tore apart Maccabi Haifa in a 7-2 win to send them into the last-16 of the Champions League. RB Leipzig took a big step towards the knockout stage with a 3-2 home win over an under-strength Real Madrid side. The German side are second in Group F, one point behind leaders Real. Agencies