Football News Facebook to air LaLiga matches for free in Indian subcontinent
Mumbai: Spanish football league LaLiga on Tuesday said social media giant Facebook will air the matches in Indian subcontinent for free for three years.The three-season deal commences with the 2018-19 campaign kicking off on August 17.“Now with Facebook, LaLiga has broken new ground, signing its first broadcast agreement ever with a social media platform,” it said in a statement.All 380 first division matches of Spain’s topflight football league will be available for free to people on Facebook in eight countries – Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal, Maldives, Sri Lanka and Pakistan.The Facebook community in the eight countries will be able to watch LaLiga Santander coverage on a live and on-demand basis through multiple devices. The matches would be available on the official LaLiga Facebook page as well as individual club pages, the statement added.Also Read | Family only reason Courtois moved to Real MadridIn addition to the live matches, shoulder programming, including a full range of weekly preview shows and highlights, will be offered.“We are thrilled to team up with Facebook to bring the millions of LaLiga fans in the Indian subcontinent even closer to the action. LaLiga sets the standard for football in the world and we are delighted that more people than ever before will have the opportunity to watch our matches live and for free through Facebook in the region,” said Javier Tebas, president, LaLiga.For major matches, viewers can see interactive studio coverage hosted by Joe Morrison.“We see this as a great opportunity to not only bring people together around world-class football, but also help LaLiga reach new audiences and grow its visibility in a key development market,” said Peter Hutton, head – global live sports programming, Facebook. For all the Latest Sports News News, Football News News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps.
Dubai: New Zealand’s captain Kane Williamson closed in on his Indian counterpart Virat Kohli, having narrowed the gap with the table topper by reaching a career-best 915 rating points in the ICC rankings for batsmen in Tests. India skipper Kohli continued to top the chart with 922 points while Cheteshwar Pujara was placed third with 881 rating points.Williamson’s 200 not out, which earned him the Player of the Match award, has lifted him from 897 points to within seven points of India captain Virat Kohli, who is perched at the top of the MRF Tyres ICC Test Player Rankings with 922 points. With two more Tests to go in the series, Williamson has a chance to regain the top spot, which he occupied briefly towards the end of 2015.Williamson’s rating points are the highest by any New Zealander in Test cricket with Richard Hadlee the only other player from his country to cross the 900-point mark with a best of 909 points in bowling.Openers Tom Latham and Jeet Raval have also made good progress after their centuries in Hamilton. Latham’s score of 161 has lifted him one place to a career-best 11th position and just three points shy of South Africa’s Faf du Plessis, who is in 10th place with 702 points. Raval’s maiden century, after seven fifties, has helped him gain five slots and reach 33rd position.Among their bowlers, the pair of Trent Boult (down two places to eighth) and Tim Southee (ninth) remain in the top 10 while Neil Wagner is also moving in the right direction, gaining three places and reaching 11th position after finishing with seven wickets in the match, including a five-wicket haul in the first innings.Ravindra Jadeja too maintained his fifth position in bowling with 794 points while the out-of-favour Ravichandran Ashwin was 10th with 763 points. For all the Latest Sports News News, Cricket News News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps.
Head Coach of Sri Lanka Cricket is set to return home after boards’ statement. The ODI series between two sides will be followed by a T20 series.Sri Lanka has slipped in the ICC rankings and failed to secure automatic qualification for 2020 T20 World Cup in Australia. However, under him, Sri Lanka has slipped in the ICC rankings and failed to secure automatic qualification for 2020 T20 World Cup in Australia. They may be struggling in ODIS but Sri Lanka made history by becoming the first Asian team to win a Test series in South Africa.Sri Lanka did exceedingly well in the longest format of the game to upstage Proteas in their own den. However, in the limited overs setup, it has been one-way traffic with South Africa being on the driver’s seat. The ODI series will be followed by a T20 series. highlights New Delhi: Sri Lanka head coach Chandika Hathurusinghe was on Thursday told to return home from South Africa in the middle of the ODI series and fielding coach Steve Rixon will take charge of the team for the subsequent T20 series.”Hathurusinghe has been asked to return from South Africa after the final ODI. Steve Rixon will take charge for the T20 series,” Shammi Silva, the Sri Lanka Cricket President said on Thursday. Hathurusinghe will be returning to Sri Lanka after the final ODI game in Cape Town on March 16.South Africa are leading the series 4-0. Rixon, the fielding coach, will take charge of the team for the three T20 games between March 19 and 24, Silva said. Silva said the SLC will ask Hathurusinghe about his plans for the World Cup in England from May-July. Hathurusinghe became Sri Lanka’s head coach in December 2017 after leading Bangladesh to success. For all the Latest Sports News News, Cricket News News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps.
New Delhi: Slow wickets are fine but rank turners, like the one in the opening match of the ongoing Indian Premier League in Chennai, should not be laid for Twenty20 cricket, says Kolkata Knight Riders batsman Robin Uthappa. The opening game of the 12th edition of the IPL was a low-scoring affair with Royal Challengers Bangalore managing just 70 runs and Chennai Super Kings huffed and puffed before overhauling the target.Asked if, as a cricketer, he is fine with slow wickets, Uthappa said the format is such that it’s better if runs are scored freely.”It’s not conducive for viewership, T20 cricket is made for entertainment. It’s competitive but you have to have a wider perspective of what’s happening as well. You want it to be evenly balanced. Slow wicket is fine but rank turners, like Chennai, are not conducive for T20 cricket, doesn’t serve the purpose,” said Uthappa ahead of KKR’s clash against Delhi Capitals on Saturday. For all the Latest Sports News News, Indian Premier League News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. highlights “Hopefully, the wickets are conducive for Twenty20 cricket. It’s batsman’s game. It’s what it is. People come out there to watch batsmen hit sixes and bowlers defy that on good wickets. T20 and cricket, in general, is moving in that direction,” added Uthappa. The track at Feroze Shah Kotla here is also usually low and slow but it is even slower, according to Chris Morris, who is likely to play his first game for Delhi Capitals on Saturday.”The biggest difference is that it’s a bit slower and the ball is stopping a bit more. In the past wickets were good, on occasion they were quick,” said Morris.Delhi Capitals had lost their first home match and they would want to avoid the same result while KKR, who are now playing a few away games, want to keep the winning momentum going.”The away wins are extremely important in this tournament. Delhi is a strong team at home. The wicket looks different. It’s not a regular Kotla wicket,” Uthappa said. Both Uthappa and Morris said that West Indies batsman Andre Russell creates a huge impact on the game.Russell has come out with explosive knocks in the previous two KKR games.”He (Russell) knows what impact he creates. He understands what role he plays in making it from 180 to 215. Since he led at Caribbean Premier League, so there is a sense of responsibility as well,” Uthappa said. Morris added: “He is an absolute genius. It’s going to be the case of ‘he misses and I hit’. He is dangerous. “I might look calm and collected but my brains are working overtime. You got to trust your training. I practised my yorkers and bouncers, slower balls.Hopefully, he (Russell) makes some mistakes.”A lot of focus is on players’ workload management this season but Morris is hardly bothered. “You are here to play cricket. I train when I have to and rest when I have to. I am not going to subdue my training, if someone tells me,” the South African signed off. Robbie shares his thoughts on how the wickets should be panned out. Kolkata Knight Riders register their second win on the trot.Kolkata will play their next game against Delhi Capitals. 
highlights Pakistan registered their second lowest World Cup total against Windies. Oshane Thomas scalped four wickets for 27 runs. Chris Gayle scored his 52nd half-century. New Delhi: West Indies launched their World Cup 2019 campaign in style, decimating Pakistan in all three departments to register a famous seven-wicket win at Trent Bridge in Nottingham. After opting to bowl on Friday, Windies produced a superlative performance with the ball and reduced Pakistan for mere 105 runs. The Caribbean side came out with a set plan and executed it with perfection. The short-ball tactic against Pakistan succeeded in taking out eight of the ten wickets with the balls directed at the body. Though the most expensive of them all, skipper Jason Holder and Oshane Thomas shared seven wickets between them, while Andre Russell registered two wickets, giving away mere four runs.It was the final duo of Wahab Riaz and Mohammad Amir who took the score past the three-figure mark. Opener Fakhar Zaman and Babar Azam top scored with 22 while rest was all ruins. The Caribbeans’ five-pronged pace attack was too much for the Pakistan side to handle.Imam-ul-Haq was the first causality, bitterly disappointed with himself after he gloved a short ball down the leg-side to Shai Hope behind the stumps. The team had barely moved on from the early strike when Andre Russell put a premature end to Fakhar Zaman’s fireworks too, in his very first over. The Pakistan opener was undone by a bouncer he shaped up to pull, only for the ball to hit his helmet grille and roll back on to disturb the furniture. Before ending his three-over opening spell, Russell bounced out Haris Sohail too, leaving Pakistan reeling at 45 for 3 at the end of ten overs.Mohammad Hafeez along with Sarfaraz Ahmed tried to build some sort of partnership but didn’t manage to add much to the scoreboard. Hafeez played on the rise and led everyone to witness some sensational display of hand-eye coordination but couldn’t afford to cut loose with West Indies pacers striking at regular intervals at the other end.Skipper returned to the attack and struck gold, twice. Hope took the caught-behind appeal against Sarfraz Ahmed upstairs immediately after being turned down and was vindicated as the replays revealed a faint nick off the batsman’s gloves as the Pakistan skipper looked to glance the short delivery down the leg side.The pressure kept looming on the men-in-green which eventually put them on the back foot, and kept them out of the game. The wickets kept tumbling for Pakistan, and they finished for a below-par total, which also turned out to be their second-lowest total in World Cup.Chasing 105, Windies management sent their regular openers Chris Gayle and Shai Hope. The duo saw the initials overs before going after the opposition bowlers. Chris Gayle was the first to open his arms, and his counter-part Shai Hope emulated him.The partnership continued for 36 runs before Shai Hope was sent back to the pavilion by Pakistan’s experienced campaigner Mohammad Amir. He bowled a short of length delivery just outside off and Hope went for an aerial punch through the off-side. He was taken aback by the extra bounce and the ball ballooned up off the top part of the bat. Hafeez kept his eyes on the ball and completed the catch with ease.His departure led Darren Bravo to the crease, who didn’t trouble the scorers. However, Pooran along with set Chris Gayle strung a crucial partnership of 31 runs. In this process, the latter scored his 52nd fifty. His innings was laced with six boundaries and three mighty sixes.Once Gayle was dismissed in 11th over, and Windies already saw themselves at 77 runs. With just 29 runs to score in 39 overs, Pooran and Hetmyer played with responsibility to help Windies start their World Cup campaign on high.
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Jack Leach. The greatest 1 not out in Test match history.— Nick Mullins (@andNickMullins) August 25, 2019Ben Stokes & Jack Leach… #ENGvAUS pic.twitter.com/2K8avITvPt— Chris West (@ChrisWest179) August 25, 2019Every Ben Stokes needs a Jack Leach.— Richard Osman (@richardosman) August 25, 2019Sensational, breathtaking and legendary. What an unbelievable innings from Jack Leach. 1 run from 17 deliveries takes a remarkable amount of skill.— Boring James Milner (@BoringMilner) August 25, 2019Stokes played one of the finest knocks in Test cricket as he guided England to an improbable one-wicket win against Australia on the fourth day of the third Test at Headingley.Chasing 359 for the win, England were left 286/9, still, 73 runs away from the target. Stokes and Leach stitched together an unbeaten partnership of 76 runs guiding England to victory and tying the Ashes series 1-1 with two Test matches to go. New Delhi: While Ben Stokes was the hero of England’s miraculous win against Australia in the third Test of the ongoing Ashes, Jack Leach played the perfect sidekick.The bespectacled England No.11 stood firm with Stokes scoring 1 run from 17 balls as they stiched an unbeaten partnership of 76 runs.The sight of Leach cleaning his glasses between overs during the incredible partnership will surely become part of England’s cricket lore.Earlier this year, Leach had scored 92 runs against Ireland in a one-off Test after coming in as a nightwatchman.Leach was praised for heroics and also got a reward. The official sponsors of the series Specsavers have announced that spinner will be getting free spectacles for life. Specsavers confirmed that Leach will be getting free glasses after all-rounder Ben Stokes had tweeted asking the sponsor to give the spinner free specs. Here’s some more praise for Jack Leach:
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Portland St. looks to sweep N. Colorado February 9, 2020 Share This StoryFacebookTwitteremailPrintLinkedinRedditPortland State (11-13, 5-7) vs. Northern Colorado (15-7, 8-3)Bank of Colorado Arena, Greeley, Colorado; Monday, 9 p.m. ESTBOTTOM LINE: Northern Colorado seeks revenge on Portland State after dropping the first matchup in Portland. The teams last played on Dec. 28, when the Vikings shot 50.8 percent from the field while holding Northern Colorado’s shooters to just 44.8 percent en route to a four-point victory. SAVVY SENIORS: Northern Colorado’s Jonah Radebaugh, Kai Edwards and Trent Harris have combined to score 47 percent of the team’s points this season, including 54 percent of all Bears scoring over the last five games.FACILITATING THE OFFENSE: Radebaugh has accounted for 54 percent of all Northern Colorado field goals over the last five games. The senior guard has 30 field goals and 45 assists in those games.SLIPPING AT 69: Northern Colorado is 0-5 this year when it allows 69 points or more and 15-2 when holding opponents to fewer than 69.COLD SPELL: Portland State has lost its last four road games, scoring 66 points, while allowing 80 per game.DID YOU KNOW: Portland State has posted an outstanding offensive rebound percentage of 37.7 percent, ranking the Vikings fifth nationally in that category. The offensive rebound percentage for Northern Colorado stands at just 26.1 percent (ranked 256th).
Associated Press ___For more AP college basketball coverage: https://apnews.com/Collegebasketball and http://twitter.com/AP_Top25___This was generated by Automated Insights, http://www.automatedinsights.com/ap, using data from STATS LLC, https://www.stats.com,Update on the latest sports
Santa Clara, Pepperdine meet in WCC quarters Share This StoryFacebookTwitteremailPrintLinkedinRedditNo. 7 seed Santa Clara (20-12, 7-10) vs. No. 6 seed Pepperdine (15-15, 8-8)West Coast Conference Tourney Quarterfinals, Orleans Arena, Las Vegas; Friday, 11 p.m. ESTBOTTOM LINE: Santa Clara and Pepperdine are prepared to face off in the quarterfinals of the WCC tourney. In the regular season, Pepperdine won both of the head-to-head matchups. The teams last went at it on Feb. 6, when the Waves shot 50 percent from the field while limiting Santa Clara to just 45 percent en route to a 14-point victory. Associated Press For more AP college basketball coverage: https://apnews.com/Collegebasketball and http://twitter.com/AP_Top25___This was generated by Automated Insights, http://www.automatedinsights.com/ap, using data from STATS LLC, https://www.stats.com
LEADING THE WAY: The electric Colbey Ross is averaging 19.8 points, 4.4 rebounds and 7.2 assists to lead the charge for the Waves. Kameron Edwards is also a key contributor, accounting for 15.9 points and 6.9 rebounds per game. The Broncos have been led by DJ Mitchell, who is averaging 10.6 points and 5.2 rebounds.CREATING OFFENSE: Ross has made or assisted on 56 percent of all Pepperdine field goals over the last three games. Ross has accounted for 19 field goals and 19 assists in those games.ACCOUNTING FOR ASSISTS: The Waves have recently used assists to create buckets more often than the Broncos. Pepperdine has 41 assists on 68 field goals (60.3 percent) across its past three games while Santa Clara has assists on 41 of 74 field goals (55.4 percent) during its past three games.DID YOU KNOW: Pepperdine has attempted the second-most free throws among all WCC teams. The Waves have averaged 19.8 foul shots per game this season.___ March 6, 2020
Little Rock faces Ga. Southern in Sun Belt finals March 12, 2020 For more AP college basketball coverage: https://apnews.com/Collegebasketball and http://twitter.com/AP_Top25___This was generated by Automated Insights, http://www.automatedinsights.com/ap, using data from STATS LLC, https://www.stats.com,Tampa Bay Lightning advance to face Dallas Stars in Stanley Cup finals, beating New York Islanders 2-1 in OT in Game 6 BIG MEN ON CAMPUS: The versatile Markquis Nowell is averaging 17.2 points, 4.7 assists and 2.1 steals to lead the way for the Trojans. Ruot Monyyong is also a primary contributor, producing 11.9 points and 9.5 rebounds per game. The Eagles have been led by Ike Smith, who is averaging 14.1 points and 5.5 rebounds.SOLID SMITH: Smith has connected on 33.3 percent of the 159 3-pointers he’s attempted and has made 5 of 17 over his last five games. He’s also made 66.2 percent of his free throws this season.WINLESS WHEN: Arkansas-Little Rock is 0-7 this year when it scores 66 points or fewer and 21-3 when it scores at least 67.UNDEFEATED WHEN: Arkansas-Little Rock is a perfect 16-0 when it scores at least 72 points. The Trojans are 5-10 when scoring any fewer than that.DID YOU KNOW: Arkansas-Little Rock has attempted the eighth-most free throws in all of Division I. The Trojans have averaged 24 free throws per game and 30.4 per game over their last five games.___
Associated Press Share This StoryFacebookTwitteremailPrintLinkedinRedditNo. 5 seed Georgia Southern (20-13, 14-8) vs. No. 1 seed Arkansas-Little Rock (21-10, 15-5)Sun Belt Conference Tourney Championship, Smoothie King Center, New Orleans; Saturday, 11:30 a.m. EDTBOTTOM LINE: Georgia Southern and Arkansas-Little Rock are set to do battle in the Championship of the Sun Belt tournament. The only meeting between the teams this season came on Jan. 6, when the Trojans shot 56 percent from the field while limiting Georgia Southern to just 44.3 percent en route to a six-point victory.
Share This StoryFacebookTwitteremailPrintLinkedinRedditLONDON (AP) — The Latest on the coronavirus outbreak’s effect on sports around the world (all times UK):5:15 p.m.The Italian soccer federation is planning to ask UEFA to postpone the European Championship. March 15, 2020 Associated Press Most people quickly recover from the global virus after experiencing only mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia.___More AP sports: https://apnews.com/apf-sports and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports,Tampa Bay Lightning advance to face Dallas Stars in Stanley Cup finals, beating New York Islanders 2-1 in OT in Game 6 UEFA has a meeting planned on Tuesday to discuss the calendar. The virus outbreak has also tested the limits of soccer’s World Cup schedule.___1:15 p.m.Valencia’s Argentine defender Ezequiel Garay says that he has tested positive for the coronavirus, making him the first Spanish league player to become infected. 
Federation president Gabriele Gravina tells Mediaset TV that Italian officials want Serie A to be completed by June 30.The Stadio Olimpico in Rome is slated to host the opening match of Euro 2020 on June 12, plus three other games of the tournament.Gravina says, “The hope is to finish by June 30. … And we’ll need to insert the Champions League and Europa League also. The deadline is June 30, then we’ll eventually see if we need to exceed that.”He adds, “We’ll propose to UEFA that they postpone the Euros.”Serie A is currently suspended until April 3, along with all other sports in Italy, the European epicenter of the virus outbreak. “I have tested positive for the coronavirus,” Garay wrote on a social media account Sunday. “I feel well and now the only thing to do is to follow the instructions of health officials to remain confined.” Valencia added in a statement that a total of five members of its staff and team have the new virus, without specifying if Garay is the only player. It says that all are in good health and confined at their homes.Garay, who is recovering from surgery after tearing a ligament in February, said in a message posted on Instagram that “it’s clear that 2020 is starting on the wrong foot.”On Saturday, fellow Spanish club Alavés said that two members of its coaching staff had the virus. It said they are in good health. The Spanish league has suspended play due to the pandemic. The Latest: Italy to ask UEFA to postpone Euros