By Nitin Srivastava
New Delhi [India], March 19 (ANI): Kiren Rijiju, the Union Minister for Youth Affairs and Sports, feels ace Indian wrestler Bajrang Punia wanted to feel secure and that is why he went ahead and got vaccinated with the Tokyo Olympics round the corner.
The world number one wrestler on Thursday said that he has already received his first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. This has led to the raising of a few eyebrows as there hasn’t been any official announcement on starting of vaccination of Olympic-bound athletes.
The Sports Minister feels to avoid any delay in getting vaccinated, Bajrang might have received his first dose. “For vaccination, we are in discussion with the health ministry. He (Bajrang) must have thought that because there is a delay, he wanted to be secure. I cannot make any comment right now but we are worried about the safety of all the players,” Rijiju told ANI.
Bajrang while speaking to ANI on Thursday said he has already received his first dose of vaccine and will take the next jab after 28 days. “I have taken the first dose of vaccine and would take the next dose after 28 days. I won’t tell anyone to take the vaccine or not take it. Athletes must consult their doctors and coaches before getting the first dose,” he said.
Meanwhile, an unnamed shooter has tested positive for coronavirus ahead of the International Shooting Sport Federation (ISSF) World Cup Rifle/Pistol/Shotgun which is scheduled to start on Friday at the Dr Karni Singh Shooting range (DKSSR). But Rijiju affirmed that all safety protocols are being followed and there is nothing to worry about.
“Everybody has to follow bubble protocol. India is very particular about conducting any tournament and even for the practice in the training of the athlete all the safety measures are being taken care of, nothing to worry about,” said Rijiju.
Last week, fencer Bhavani Devi scripted history by becoming the first fencer from India to qualify for the Tokyo Olympics. The Sports Minister said the Tokyo Olympic-bound athlete will be provided with personalised care. “We are very proud of Bhawani because she has qualified for the Olympics. We have entered fencing as a priority sports so now we will have some top-class athletes training center in India itself. After qualification we have to ensure that all these Tokyo-bound athletes will be provided personalised care,” he said.
The postponed Tokyo Olympics will take place from July 23 to August 8. (ANI)

New Delhi [India], March 19 (ANI): After earning his maiden India call-up, pacer Prasidh Krishna said it is a surreal feeling to be named in the ODI squad, adding that he cannot wait to get started.
The All-India Senior Selection Committee on Friday picked the Indian squad for the upcoming three-match ODI series against England with Suryakumar Yadav, Krunal Pandya, and Krishna securing a spot in the squad.
“Feels surreal when you get the call to play for your country. It’s like a dream come true. Excited to play my part and contribute to the success of the team. Thanks @BCCI. Can’t wait to get started,” Krishna tweeted.
The ODI series will begin on March 23, with all the matches to be played in Pune. The second and third ODI will be played on March 26 and 28.
Krishna represented Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in the last edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL). The player had played six matches for the franchise, scalping four wickets, and had an economy rate of 9.37.
India’s ODI squad: Virat Kohli (Captain), Rohit Sharma (vice-captain), Shikhar Dhawan, Shubman Gill, Shreyas Iyer, Suryakumar Yadav, Hardik Pandya, Rishabh Pant (wicket-keeper), KL Rahul (wicket-keeper), Yuzvendra Chahal, Kuldeep Yadav, Krunal Pandya, Washington Sundar, T Natarajan, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Md. Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, Shardul Thakur.
Currently, both India and England are playing the five-match T20I series. A blistering half-century from Suryakumar (57), followed by a brilliant performance from the bowlers helped India win the fourth T20I at the Narendra Modi Stadium on Thursday.
With the eight-run win over England, India levelled the series 2-2 with the series decider to be played on Saturday at the same venue. (ANI)

Ahmedabad (Gujarat) [India], March 19 (ANI): Suryakumar Yadav thoroughly enjoyed his maiden half-century as he batted for the first time in international cricket to lead India’s comeback in the T20I series against England on Thursday.
Man of the Match Suryakumar’s sensational knock ensured India posted a competitive 185/8 in the fourth T20I after India failed to start well in the must-win game.
The right-handed batsman struck a magnificent six off the first delivery he faced in international cricket and after India’s win, Suryakumar said he prayed for these moments.
“I prayed for moments like this, what a feeling.#TeamIndia,” Suryakumar tweeted along with pictures of Team India celebrating the win.
Suryakumar’s blistering knock was followed by a brilliant performance from the bowlers as India won the fourth T20I by eight runs.
The 30-year-old cricketer revealed that he was prepared for the game against England and was just waiting for an opportunity.
Suryakumar said that he is ready to bat at any position but was happy that he got the chance higher up the order in the fourth T20I on Thursday.
“I feel in the last three-four years I have batted at all positions. Right from opening till number seven and number eight. I am flexible to bat at any position,” said Suryakumar in a virtual press conference.
“Whenever someone asks me I say the same thing, I have said the same thing to the team management as well that I am very very flexible to bat at any number wherever they want me to bat. So I am happy that I got the opportunity to bat higher up the order,” he further said.
“They (team management) informed in the morning only that I will be batting higher up the order and batting at number three. So they wanted to give me the time to prepare. And I said I will try and make full use of the opportunity given when I go into bat,” Suryakumar added.
Suryakumar has also earned a maiden call-up in the ODI squad and the batsman will look to make the most of the opportunity in the longer format too. (ANI)

London [UK], March 19 (ANI): After Arsenal were beaten by Olympiacos in the Europa League Round of 16 second-leg match, manager Mikel Arteta said that his side’s performance was nowhere near the standards they have set for themselves.
Arsenal suffered a 0-1 defeat in the match. However, Arteta’s men had won the first-leg match 3-1, meaning they progress in the competition with a 3-2 win on aggregate.
“I am pleased because we are through and last year we went out by them. If I have to evaluate the performance with what we’ve done today with the ball in particular, then it’s nowhere near the standards we have set for ourselves,” the club’s official website quoted Arteta as saying.
“We made it really difficult because we didn’t have any stability when you give the amount of balls away that we have in the game. When that happens, you don’t have the control to manage the tie in the way that we should have done and that’s related to the amount of chances we missed again,” he added.
Although the manager is happy with his team advancing in the Europa League, Arteta cautioned his players saying that the competition will be now “even tougher”.
“Yes, we are really happy with that. It’s enough step forward as a team so hopefully we can learn some lessons today and be ready because it will be even tougher. It’s true that we have beaten tough teams in Benfica and Olympiacos, but the next one will be even tougher,” he said.
Arsenal will next play against West Ham in the Premier League on Sunday. (ANI)

Ahmedabad (Gujarat) [India], March 19 (ANI): Down 2-1, Team India made a remarkable comeback in the T20I series against England as the hosts registered a thrilling eight-run win in the fourth T20I on Thursday. And with the series level 2-2, the hosts will look to hit top gear when they take the field in the decider on Saturday.
Suryakumar Yadav, who was brought back into the playing XI after being dropped in the third T20I, played a match-winning knock to plot India’s comeback before Hardik Pandya, Rahul Chahar and Shardul Thakur decimated the English batsmen.
But England skipper Eoin Morgan welcomed the loss against India and termed the fourth T20I as an ideal match for preparation for the upcoming T20 World Cup.
“We really want to play in must-win games like this. They’re the closest thing that we get to playing in a World Cup or a Champions Trophy and against a fantastic side like India, it should bode to be a great game,” Morgan told the host broadcaster after the match.
The issue of ‘soft signal’ came under the scanner during the fourth T20I between India and England. During hosts’ innings, two umpiring calls were debatable and it could have gone either way. First, Suryakumar was sent back to the pavilion by Sam Curran. The right-handed batsman tried to play a ramp shot but Dawid Malan ended up taking the catch.
Replays indicated that the ball might have hit the ground when Malan was taking the catch, however, as the soft signal was out, the third umpire stayed with the on-field call citing “lack of conclusive evidence”. Later in the match, all-rounder Washington Sundar was caught at the boundary by Adil Rashid and it seemed that the England spinner might have touched the rope while taking the catch but the on-field call stayed.
India skipper Virat Kohli said he fails to understand why the on-field umpire has to give a soft signal as “out” when the player is himself unsure regarding whether he has taken a catch or not. He went on to demand an “I don’t know” call for the umpires as the debate on soft signal erupted during the fourth T20I.
“I don’t know why there can’t an “I don’t know” call for the umpires. You want these things ironed out to keep the game linear. But we want clarity on the field,” Kohli told host broadcaster Star Sports at the post-match presentation.
However leaving all this aside, it was a thrilling comeback by Team India in the game and in the series too. The hosts have already played a must-win game (fourth T20I) and with the home side high on confidence, Kohli and boys are expected to take the fifth game by storm.
The Men in Blue have also negated the toss factor and with deeper options available in the batting line-up, it wouldn’t be a surprise if Kohli wins toss and opts to bat on Saturday.
Moreover, a victory would ensure that Team India carries on the winning momentum to the three-match ODI series which gets underway from Tuesday.
The only thing which bothers Team India is KL Rahul’s form at the top of the order. The right-handed batsman has scored just 18 runs in the series and though he did get a start on Thursday, it was rather sluggish innings by the opener.
India’s T20I squad: Virat Kohli (captain), Rohit Sharma (vc), KL Rahul, Shikhar Dhawan, Shreyas Iyer, Suryakumar Yadav, Hardik Pandya, Rishabh Pant (wk), Ishan Kishan (wk), Yuzvendra Chahal, Rahul Chahar, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Rahul Tewatia, T Natarajan, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Deepak Chahar, Navdeep Saini, Shardul Thakur.
England’s T20I squad: Eoin Morgan, Liam Livingstone, Dawid Malan, Jason Roy, Moeen Ali, Sam Curran, Tom Curran, Ben Stokes, Jos Buttler, Jonny Bairstow, Sam Billings, Jofra Archer, Chris Jordon, Adil Rashid, Mark Wood, Reece Topley. (ANI)

New Delhi [India], March 19 (ANI): After not playing an international match for almost 15 months, the Blue Tigers will finally be taking the field in the upcoming international friendlies against Oman and UAE. While the match against Oman is scheduled for March 25, the match against the UAE is slated for March 29. Both the matches will be held in Dubai.
In an interaction with ANI, goalkeeper Gurpreet Singh Sandhu opened up about the upcoming matches, the role of coach Igor Stimac and how he sees his role as a senior member in the side. The 29-year-old also said that the team would be in good mental space as all members played in the recently-concluded Indian Super League (ISL).
“I think to get an opportunity together again after 14 months itself is a very exciting opportunity for us as players. We love getting involved and getting called up by the national team. The environment and the atmosphere is different to come over here and wear the Indian colours and do training together and prepare for one single goal together because we may be opponents in domestic tournaments but here we have one aim,” said Sandhu.
The Blue Tigers last played at the international level in November 2019 in the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 World Cup Qualifiers.
“I think it’s very important to use these two games as a catapult towards you know those qualifiers because we haven’t played together for 14 months. We need to do the process again play as a team, test ourselves out against the good teams in Asia, and make sure that by the time the qualifiers come up we are ready as a team. We know what we have to do on the pitch because in those qualifiers mistakes can’t happen and these are the games to test everything out and make sure that we as a team are ready for those qualifiers,” he added.
From being the youngest player in the Indian setup in 2010, the goalkeeper has come a long way and now he finds himself in the role where he can shape up budding youngsters and help in grooming and channeling the talent.
Speaking on his role, Sandhu said: “It’s amazing to realise that I am getting an opportunity to be a senior player in the national team. There was a time when I was the youngest player in the team — that was about 11 years ago in 2010. I know how it feels to be a young player in the team so I am very excited about the young faces that we have in the team. It’s very important for senior players to help them and tell them to express themselves, help them in any way shape, or form.”
“It is very important to give that support to them and also guide them in a way where they don’t feel that we are telling too much because they are professionals and they have played some good football in the last six months. I would tell them to take responsibility and not be afraid of making mistakes because football is a game of mistakes as well. It is very important that they help us with the talent and hard work. It is always good to have young blood in the team,” he added.
Coach Igor Stimac has already managed to create an identity within this team and Sandhu also accepts the role the coach has played in giving confidence to each member of the Blue Tigers setup.
“I think coach Igor with his limited amount of time as coach of the national team has helped so many of us already. You know the kind of confidence that he gives you, the kind of physically demanding competition that he creates in the team is phenomenal. We have seen so many players transform from the old self and turn into proper machines,” said Sandhu.
“One good example that I can give you is Manvir — the kind of guidance and the system that we have in the team to take care of ourselves and to be physically very very strong. Also to be tactically prepared is one of the plus points of having the coach and his staff. Even when we were not together as a team, it was one of the things which was being discussed as a group. Messages to take care of ourselves and to keep building ourselves was always there and he has a big part in helping me to reach my best potential self. He assured me that physically I can be much better and that has helped me to not only perform better, but also understand the game very well tactically,” he added.
When asked how the team will shape up after playing a competitive ISL season 7, Sandhu said: “Definitely having the ISL behind us in our arsenal will help us play these two games because momentum is very important. Everyone in the camp has played games. It’s not like you know you can pinpoint one player who hasn’t participated in the league — they have all participated in some way. It is great for us because everyone is available and raring to go. We just need to make sure that we are mentally and physically prepared for these two games.” (ANI)