Stuttgart (Germany), July 3 (IANS) Former champions Spain and Germany, the two favourites to lift the trophy, will clash in a marquee quarterfinal clash at MHP Arena here on Friday as the 2024 European Championship reaches the business end with the last-eight stage matches scheduled in the next few days.

A lot of attention would be on German veteran Toni Kroos as the 34-year-old midfielder is set to retire at the end of Germany’s campaign.

Ahead of the feisty encounter against Spain, Kroos’ former Real Madrid teammate Joselu spoke on the occasion and said, ‘We hope to retire Toni on Friday.’

“We hope it is his last game. It is a game that is not special because of him being here. It is a quarterfinal against a great team. We hope to retire Toni on Friday. He’s been a friend to me. I have spoken with him a lot and he has advised me a lot. He is fundamental for Germany and he has been for Real Madrid. We have to be careful with him on Friday,” said Joselu to reporters in the pre-game conference.

Joselu joined Real Madrid at the beginning of the 2023/24 season. The Spanish forward has been a lifelong fan of the Los Blancos and had a fairytale run with the club which saw him score a late brace against Bayern Munich in the semifinals of the competition which led their team to victory. He scored 17 goals and provided three assists in 49 games for Real Madrid despite starting in only 18 of those games.

Joselu has now left the club and will play for Qatari side Al Gharafa in the coming season.

“We know the conditions that Toni has. I think he is a fundamental player, but we cannot focus only on him. The ball goes through him every time Germany has possession and Toni is a player who represents everything for them. We will have to have a special eye on him so that Germany does not enjoy the game. It is very important to win to qualify. About Toni, we have to believe in ourselves. We don’t care about the other team’s players. I think Friday will be Toni’s last game,” added the former Real Madrid striker.

–IANS

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New Delhi, July 3 (IANS) World Championship medallist wrestler Vinesh Phogat on Wednesday received a Schengen visa for Spain for training and competition in Madrid after seeking “urgent help” from Sports Minister Mansukh Mandaviya, Ministry of External Affairs and other authorities as the process got delayed.

Vinesh, who will be competing at the Grand Prix of Spain 2024 in Madrid, has her flight scheduled for tonight (Wednesday night) but did not get her visa till Wednesday morning. But the wrestler from Haryana can now proceed to Madrid where she will have a one-week training stint before taking part in the Grand Prix of Spain. Vinesh will then travel to France ahead of the Olympic Games.

Taking to X, Vinesh requested the authorities concerned to oversee the matter. She tagged the Ministry of External Affairs along with the Sports Minister and the Consulate General of France in Bangalore in her post.

“Dear authorities, I’m requesting for urgent help. I applied for my Schengen visa in Bangalore on 24th June. I have to leave tonight for a competition in Spain on 6th July but have no information on my visa. Requesting @mansukhmandviya @BangaloreFrance @MEABharat to help,” she posted on X.

A few hours later, Vinesh Phogat took to social media again to inform that she got the Schengen visa and thanked them for their support.

“I have just now received my Schengen visa. I would like to sincerely thank all the authorities who have helped me get the visa so quickly. Means a lot. Thank you @mansukhmandviya, @BangaloreFrance, @MEABharat, @DGSAI, TOPS, and MOC team”, Vinesh wrote in her post on X.

The competition in Madrid, Spain is scheduled from July 5 to 7 with the women’s event slated to take place on July 6. She will then attend a training camp in Boulogne sur-Mer, France, before the Paris Olympic Games.

–IANS

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New Delhi, July 3 (IANS) The ICC Men’s T20 World Cup-winning Indian team will be honoured by a victory parade in Mumbai from Nariman Point to Wankhede Stadium on Thursday and will also be felicitated at a ceremony at the Stadium.

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) secretary Jay Shah gave an update in a social media post ‘X’, stating, “Join us for the Victory Parade honouring Team India’s World Cup win! Head to Marine Drive and Wankhede Stadium on July 4th from 5:00 pm onwards to celebrate with us! Save the date! #TeamIndia #Champions @BCCI.”

The Indian team led by Rohit Sharma will arrive home at Indira Gandhi Internationa Airport (IGI) in New Delhi at 6 am after which they will meet PM Narendra Modi and will depart for Mumbai at 9:30 am.

After reaching Mumbai airport, the team will move to the Wankhede Stadium. The BCCI has arranged for a 1 km Victory parade from Nariman Point to Wankhede followed by a small ceremony at Wankhede Stadium.

Rohit Sharma too shared the news with ‘immense delight’ on his social media post ‘X’ saying, “We want to enjoy this special moment with all of you. So let’s celebrate this win with a victory parade at Marine Drive & Wankhede on July 4th from 5:00 pm onwards. It’s coming home.”

Team India’s full schedule on July 4:

Arrives in Delhi at 6 AM.

Meet PM Narendra Modi.

Leave for Mumbai at 9.30 AM.

Drive from Mumbai Airport to Wankhede.

1 KM Victory parade from Nariman Point to Wankhede.

A small ceremony at Wankhede stadium.

–IANS

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Kandy, July 3 (IANS) The Colombo Strikers began their Lanka Premier League 2024 campaign with a convincing 51-run victory over the Kandy Falcons. The Falcons chasing a difficult target of 199 were dismissed for 147 in just 15. 5 overs.

Pakistan all-rounder Shadab Khan recorded a first-ever hat-trick of his career during a majestic display of 4-22 in his bowling attack against the Falcons. Also, making it a magnificent moment in the history of the Lanka Premier League (LPL), a second hat-trick was also recorded for the tournament.

“I am truly elated as it happens to be my first hat-trick in my career and I also wasn’t aware of it being Lanka Premier League’s second hat-trick in history. It’s an incredible milestone for any player where you want those types of things in your career so hopefully there are many more,” said Shadab Khan.

The Colombo Strikers are set to face off against the Galle Titans in Wednesday’s highly-anticipated Lanka Premier League (LPL) match. This clash promises to be a thrilling encounter as both teams have been preparing intensely and are eager to secure a victory.

The Colombo Strikers are managed by head coach Carl Crowe with help from assistant coaches Simon Helmot and Chaminda Vaas, who have faith in both their new players and their core group.

Improved performance in international cricket has been achieved by Colombo Strikers a team that is widely recognized as a dominant force in the sport.

“It’s just simple because Shehan Fernando bowled brilliantly in the last over, so I just try to back him up because the Kandy team wanted to take a boundary and we wanted to take a wicket as well so our plan was simple to not let them take the runs and we aim for our opening for a wicket,” added the Pakistani all-rounder.

–IANS

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New Delhi, July 3 (IANS) Hardik Pandya’s impressive show in India’s triumphant 2024 Men’s T20 World Cup campaign has seen him become the top-ranked all-rounder in the latest ICC Men’s T20I Rankings update on Wednesday.

Pandya has risen two places to go level with Sri Lanka’s leg-spin all-rounder Wanindu Hasaranga as the top-ranked men’s T20I all-rounder, the first time a player from India has achieved this landmark.

He made impactful cameos lower down the order with 144 runs at a strike-rate of over 150, including an unbeaten 27-ball fifty against Bangladesh at Antigua. He also took 11 wickets with the ball, and made a big contribution in the final by taking out Heinrich Klaasen and David Miller, as well as defending 16 runs in a tense final over to help India win the T20 World Cup title for the second time.

Fast-bowling spearhead Jasprit Bumrah, who won the Player of the Tournament award at the T20 World Cup for his scintillating 15 wickets, moved up by 12 spots to be at 12th place, his highest position since the end of 2020.

Left-arm wrist-spinner Kuldeep Yadav entered the top ten of the bowling rankings, moving up by three spots to joint-eighth. Left-arm pacer Arshdeep Singh has moved up by four spots to a career-best No.13 after topping the wickets chart at the T20 World Cup with 17 scalps.

Spinner Tabraiz Shamsi moved up by five positions to reach the top 15 in bowlers’ rankings. Anrich Nortje rose up by seven places to a career-best second spot to go just behind top-ranked Adil Rashid with 675 rating points.

Other movements in the top 10 of the men’s T20I all-rounder rankings include Marcus Stoinis, Sikandar Raza, Shakib Al Hasan and Liam Livingstone rising up by one spot, while Mohammad Nabi moved back by four spots to go out of the top five.

–IANS

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