Sport

Lionel Messi thrilled fans at Wankhede Stadium during his GOAT India Tour 2025, spending an hour interacting with Sachin Tendulkar, celebrities and school kids. Tendulkar gifted him a signed India jersey, while Chief Minister Fadnavis launched Project Maha-deva

Unnati Hooda and Kiran George clinched the women’s and men’s singles titles at the Odisha Masters Super 100 in Cuttack. Hooda beat Isharani Baruah in straight games, while George overcame Indonesia’s Muhamad Yusuf in a three-game thriller

India defeated Pakistan by 90 runs in their U19 Asia Cup Group A match in Dubai. Aaron George scored 85, while Kanishk Chouhan and Deepesh Devendran took three wickets each. Pakistan managed 150, with Huzaifa Ahsan top-scoring with 70

The 58th Inter IIT Sports Meet 2025 began at IIT Hyderabad with a grand opening ceremony attended by Pullela Gopichand and Saina Nehwal. Over 2,500 student athletes from 23 IITs will compete across multiple disciplines until December 21, followed by the Inter-IIT Staff Sports Meet.

Chaos and vandalism during Lionel Messi’s event at Kolkata’s Salt Lake Stadium drew widespread international media attention, with major global outlets highlighting mismanagement and crowd unrest, raising concerns over the city’s global image and event-handling capabilities.

The BJP termed the chaos at the Lionel Messi event in Kolkata as “shameful for West Bengal” and demanded Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee take responsibility. The unrest forced police action and led to Messi leaving early, prompting a judicial probe.

Nitish Kumar Reddy took a hat-trick for Andhra against Madhya Pradesh in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy Super League stage at Ambi, finishing with figures of 3-17. Despite Andhra’s loss, Reddy said he was proud to give his best

The Global Chess League Season 3 began in Mumbai with Triveni Continental Kings aiming for a hat-trick. Led by Alireza Firouzja, the team will face Alpine SG Pipers in the opener of the six-team tournament featuring top global stars

Olympic bronze medallist Aman Sehrawat and Sujeet won gold in the 61kg and 65kg freestyle categories at the Senior National Wrestling Championship in Ahmedabad. RSPB lifted the Championship Trophy with 160 points, ahead of SSCB and Haryana

India reached their first-ever Squash World Cup final with a 3-0 win over Egypt in Chennai. Velavan Senthilkumar, Anahat Singh and Abhay Singh secured victories as India set up a summit clash against Hong Kong China at Express Avenue Mall

India batter Tilak Varma emphasised batting flexibility ahead of the third T20I against South Africa in Dharamsala. With the series tied 1-1, Tilak said he is ready to bat anywhere in the order as India eye a series lead

Shubman Gill faces a survival test in the South Africa T20Is, with India’s team management weighing options ahead of the T20 World Cup. Skipper Suryakumar Yadav’s poor form adds pressure as India prepare for their title defence

India will have strong representation in the Odisha Masters 2025 finals as Isharani Baruah, Unnati Hooda and Kiran George advanced after gritty semifinal wins. Isharani will face Unnati in women’s singles, while Kiran meets Indonesia’s Muhamad Yusuf in men’s singles

Hyderabad defeated Mumbai by six wickets in the BCCI Women’s Under-19 one-day cricket championship league match at Lucknow. Mumbai were bowled out for 94, with Hyderabad chasing down the target in 26 overs to secure a comfortable win

The Telangana Congress government is facing criticism over alleged spending of Rs 100 crore on Lionel Messi’s visit, which many claim was more about photo-ops for Chief Minister Revanth Reddy than football. Allegations suggest Singareni workers and government school students were denied welfare funds while crores were diverted to the event.

Saurashtra gained a crucial first-innings lead over Hyderabad in the Vijay Merchant Trophy Under-16 second-round match at Mulapadu. Hyderabad managed 142 in reply to Saurashtra’s 245, while Saurashtra reached 195/6 at stumps on the second day

The Kanumalla Muralimohan memorial Open carrom tournament will be held at Alkapuri Community Hall, Hyderabad, from December 18 to 20. Events include men’s singles, doubles, veteran men’s singles and women’s singles, with cash prizes up to Rs 20,000

V Srinivas Reddy and S Anand Swaroop clinched the 65-plus doubles title at the GVK-AISTA Senior National Tennis Championship in Hyderabad, defeating Manmadha Rao and Dhananjeyulu 6-1, 6-1. The event saw competitive matches across multiple age categories

Credicon Mavericks clinched the inaugural Hyderabad Pickleball League title with a 4-3 tie-breaker win over All Stars. The finale also honoured standout players, with Sameer Varma named MVP, marking a milestone for pickleball’s growth in Hyderabad

Telangana swimmer Srinikesh Kiran won three bronze medals at the Asian Youth Para Games in Dubai, becoming the first from the state to achieve the feat. India’s six-member squad delivered its best-ever performance, winning 19 medals including eight gold

Nine juniors, including Ananda Hariharan and Advik Sahasya, and six open players, including PV Satyanarayana and Rama Anjaneyulu, share the lead after Round 3 of the 235th Brilliant Trophy chess tournament at Brilliant Grammar High School, Hyderabad

Lionel Messi’s Kolkata visit turned chaotic at Salt Lake Stadium as poor crowd management left fans frustrated. Bottles were hurled, seats vandalised and organisers criticised, overshadowing the Argentine star’s brief appearance during his GOAT Tour in India

Lionel Messi’s Kolkata event at Salt Lake Stadium ended in chaos, with police detaining the organiser for mismanagement. Fans vandalised the venue after failing to see Messi clearly. CM Mamata Banerjee apologised and ordered a judicial probe into the incident

Lionel Messi’s much-anticipated Kolkata appearance descended into chaos after crowd surges cut short his lap of honour at Salt Lake Stadium. Angry fans vandalised seats and banners, raising concerns over crowd management during the football icon’s India tour.