Robert Firmino and Casemiro got among the scoring charts as Brazil defeated Colombia 2-1 in the ongoing Copa America here at the Olympic Stadium on Thursday.With this win, Brazil has consolidated its position at the top of Group B in the ongoing Copa America. The side now has 9 points from three games.

In the first half, Colombia took the lead as Luis Diaz netted the ball into the goalpost. No more goals were scored in the first half, and as a result, Colombia walked in at halftime with a 1-0 lead.In the second half, Brazil managed to change its fortunes as Firmino first scored the goal in the 78th minute, bringing the scoreline level at 1-1.

In the additional time, Casemiro scored the goal, and as a result, Brazil walked away with a 2-1 victory.Earlier on Wednesday (local time), Ecuador and Peru played out a 2-2 draw. Peru is now at the third spot in the Group B standings with four points from three games.On the other hand, Ecuador is at the fourth spot with just two points from three games.

Adil Rashid’s two-wicket haul was backed up by Jos Buttler’s unbeaten 68-run knock as England defeated Sri Lanka by eight wickets in the first T20I of the three-match series on Wednesday here at the Sophia Gardens.Chasing 130, England openers Buttler and Jason Roy put on 80 runs for the first wicket inside 10 overs.

Roy (36) was dismissed by Dushmantha Chameera in the 10th over, but the wicket came too late for the visitors. Dawid Malan (7) was bowled by Isuru Udana in the 14th over, reducing England to 112/2.

In the end, Buttler along with Jonny Bairstow (13) guided England over the line by eight wickets in hand and 17 balls to spare.Earlier, two wickets each from Rashid and Sam Curran helped England restrict Sri Lanka to 129/7 in the allotted twenty overs.Sri Lanka got off to a bad start with the bat as the side was reduced to 52/4 in the ninth over.

Entire top-order failed to show any resistance and as a result, England gained an early advantage.Lower down the order, Shanaka struck 50 runs from 44 balls and this was the innings which helped Sri Lanka go past the 120-run mark.

Apart from Shanaka, skipper Kusal Perera also played a knock of 30 runs.Brief Scores: Sri Lanka 129/7 (Shanaka 50, Kusal Perera 30, Adil Rashid 2-17); England 130/2 (Jos Buttler 68*, Jason Roy 36, Dushmantha Chameera 1-24).

After coming up short in the World Test Championship (WTC) final against New Zealand, India skipper Virat Kohli said that his side does not want wicketkeeper-batsman Rishabh Pant to lose his positivity or his optimism about changing a match situation for India.Kohli’s comments came as India stumbled to an eight-wicket loss against New Zealand in the final of the World Test Championship (WTC) on Wednesday here at the Ageas Bowl.

“Look, Rishabh is just going to be a very expressive player whenever he gets an opportunity. Whenever there is a situation that needs to be understood, I think he assesses it really well. When things don’t come off, you can say that it was an error of judgment and that’s acceptable in sport, but we don’t want him to lose his positivity or his optimism in changing the situation for the team, and that’s where his USP lies,” said Kohli during a virtual press conference.

“We will definitely continue to back him to play that way and find ways to put pressure on the opposition and find ways to score runs, which is his natural game. We’re not too worried about that. I think it’s up to him to understand whether it was an error of judgment and rectify it moving forward because he has a long career with the Indian team, and certainly someone who could be a match maker for India on consistently many occasions in the future,” he added.

Kane Williamson and Ross Taylor played unbeaten knocks off 52 and 47 respectively as New Zealand defeated India by eight wickets to clinch the inaugural edition of the WTC. Earlier, Tim Southee scalped four wickets as India was bundled out for 170 in the second innings on the Reserve Day.

The inspired show with the ball ensured that New Zealand needed to score 139 runs in a minimum of 53 overs to win the title. Pant was the top-scorer for India as he played a knock of 41 runs.“Well, we definitely need to work out better plans in terms of understanding how to score runs. We have to stay in sync with the momentum of the game and not let the game drift away too much. I don’t think there’s any technical difficulties as such, but I think it’s more down to game awareness and being a little more brave and putting bowlers under pressure and not allowing them to bowl in similar areas for longer periods of time, unless it’s absolutely overcast and the ball is swinging all over the place like it did on day one,” said Kohli.

“I think outside of that, we need to be able to move the game forward and put the opposition under pressure, and that’s key to playing and performing in difficult conditions,” he added.India will next lock horns against England in a five-match Test series.

Kohli said that his side wanted first-class games ahead of the series, but they have not been given that.“Well, that doesn’t depend on us. We obviously wanted first-class games, which I believe have not been given to us. I don’t know what the reasons for that are. But yeah, other than that I think our preparation time will be ample for us to be ready for the first Test,” said Kohli.

New Zealand captain Kane Williamson has said that having the Reserve Day for the World Test Championship (WTC) final was a good initiative as there is always inclement weather around in the UK.Williamson’s comments came as New Zealand defeated India by eight wickets in the finals of the World Test Championship (WTC) on Wednesday here at the AgeasBowl.

Williamson and Ross Taylor played unbeaten knocks off 52 and 47 respectively as New Zealand defeated India by eight wickets to clinch the inaugural edition of the WTC. “Yeah, I mean, well, first of all, a fantastic feeling. 2019 was a great occasion and a brilliant game of cricket, as well. But obviously a slightly different feeling being on the right side of the result for us, and also a part of a great game of cricket and a great occasion where it was the first, I suppose, official World Test Championship, and this is a really good feeling,” said Williamson while replying to an ANI query during a virtual press conference.“I suppose having the backup day schedule in was a good initiative, and there’s always a chance of weather in this country, and we certainly saw plenty of it, but also we saw a surface that offered throughout the whole game and brought all bowlers into it whenever they had the ball in their hands. I think both teams knew that because of that coming into the last day there was three possible results, and that was win, lose and draw, and we saw that things can happen quickly. Everybody has seen that when you play in this part of the world. Fortunate for us they managed to early on in the day, and it gave us a real opportunity,” he added.

A complete effort on the Reserve Day saw New Zealand edging India in a final which had its ebbs and flows in the first innings. The Kiwis made full use of the slender 32-run lead and the Williamson-led side bundled out India cheaply in the second innings to get a target of just 139. The batsmen did not relent and in the end, the side walked away with a comfortable victory.“Well, obviously it’s the pinnacle, isn’t it, really, being involved in the final. Like I said, a formidable side in that of India. They certainly showed their quality, and for us it was a lot of heart that allowed us to stay in the game for long periods,” said Williamson. “I think we saw both teams grab momentum at certain points in time, and then to have the sixth day as backup due to weather and see both teams have a real opportunity of a result made for a fantastic game to be a part of. For us a very proud moment in our history and a proud moment just as a team really, to stick to what we do well and come away with the win, which is a really great feeling,” he added.

Talking about his partnership with Ross Taylor in the second innings, Williamson said: “You know, fantastic to be a part of a contribution and a partnership like that, and obviously with Ross, our most experienced player and leader in the group, as well, it was nice that we were able to soak up some of the pressure and then sort of score a few together, although it was really difficult to come by. But having an experienced hitter like Ross out there was certainly helpful.”

NEW DELHI: The total population of New Zealand is nearly as much as that of Gorakhpur and Noida combined. That is, around 50 lakh. At the same time, India’s population is 280 times more than that, but the cricket team of that country not only defeated us in the final of the World Test Championship, but also managed a sweeping victory against Team India last year and removed India from the first place in the world Test ranking. Now they are World No. 1 in ICC rankings. This team has added a new chapter in the history of Test cricket of 144 years by defeating India in the final of the World Test Championship. New Zealand entered the final of the ICC Trophy for the third time in six years and now the team led by Kane Williamson has managed to win this time.

Joseph ParkerValerie AdamsKane Williamson and Ross Taylor guide NZ to WTC titleIndian batting collapse on the fifth day of the World Test Championship final match between New Zealand and India, at the Rose Bowl in Southampton on Tuesday.

New Zealand has had several great players. John Wright, the former coach of Team India, was a superb batsman of this country. In the 1980s, New Zealand had one of the greatest fastest bowlers in cricket history, Sir Richard Hadlee. Mark Greatbatch was a wonderful opening batsman, who started the tradition of hitting in the early overs in ODI. Later Brendon McCullum changed the nature of world cricket with his explosive batting; today he is a coach of KKR in IPL. Similarly Stephen Fleming is the coach of CSK. Last but not least, one can never forget Kane Williamson and his contribution in New Zealand cricket.

This small country is number one in cricket, number two in rugby. The team here has also won the gold medal in the 1976 Montreal Olympics. The number of medals India has won in Olympics in the century, this country won the same number of medals by participating in only two Olympics. In the Rio Olympics, this team won four gold, nine silver and five bronze medals. NZ won two gold medals in rowing and one gold each in canoeing and sailing in these games.

The rest of the medals they won in cycling, athletics and golf. Valerie Adams, a shot putter from the same country, has so far won two gold and one silver medal in the Olympics. She also has four gold in the World Championship and three in the Commonwealth Games. New Zealand›s Joseph Parker won the hearts of everyone by winning the WBO heavyweight title in 2016.

This brings us to the question: What is the sports model of New Zealand? Actually, the secret of success behind this is to choose only seven to eight sports and master them, whereas in India, the situation is completely different. Being an Olympian here is  considered a big achievement, which proves helpful in getting a government job.

Even the President of the Indian Olympic Association, Narendra Batra, does not talk about increasing the number of medals. Their aim is to participate in all 28 Olympic sports.

Unless this  thinking changes and qualifying only is not made the main criteria but bringing the Olympic medal does not become the biggest objective, India cannot reach above one or two or at most six medals.

Kane Williamson and Ross Taylor played unbeaten knocks off 52 and 47 respectively as New Zealand defeated India by eight wickets to clinch the inaugural edition of the World Test Championship (WTC) here at the Ageas Bowl, Southampton on Wednesday. A complete effort on the Reserve Day saw New Zealand edging India in a final which had its ebbs and flows in the first innings. The Kiwis made full use of the slender 32-run lead and the Kane Williamson-led side bundled out India cheaply in the second innings to get a target of just 139. The batsmen did not relent and in the end, the side walked away with a comfortable victory. Requiring 139 to win, New Zealand openers Latham and Conway batted till the tea break, ensuring that their side did not lose any wicket before the interval. In the final session, New Zealand required 120 runs to win from 45 overs. After the tea break, Latham (9) was sent back to the pavilion by Ravichandran Ashwin. The left-handed batter stepped out of his crease to go for a big shot, but he ended up missing the ball and as a result, he was stumped, and the first-wicket partnership of 33 runs came to an end. Soon after, Ashwin had Conway (19) adjudged leg before wicket, and New Zealand was reduced to 44/2 and the side still required 95 runs for the win. Ross Taylor then joined Williamson in the middle and the duo helped New Zealand to retrieve their innings. Both batsmen mixed caution with aggression and in the end, the duo guided New Zealand to an eight-wicket victory. Earlier, Tim Southee scalped four wickets as India was bundled out for 170 in the second innings on the Reserve Day. The inspired show with the ball ensured that New Zealand would need to score 139 runs in a minimum of 53 overs to win the title. Rishabh Pant top-scored for India as he played a knock of 41 runs, but he hardly found any company as none of the top-order batsmen managed to spend time in the middle. It was ultimately left on the likes of Ravindra Jadeja (16 off 49 balls) to give him company as India lost the wickets of Virat Kohli (13), Cheteshwar Pujara (15), and Ajinkya Rahane (15) in the first session itself. Right from the first session, the Kiwi bowlers brought out their A-game. It was all about discipline and patience for the New Zealand bowlers as they kept attacking the channel outside the off-stump with the occasional bouncers to rough the batsmen up. Kohli played an unfamiliar shot and what followed is hard to explain. A mixture of good deliveries and soft dismissals resulted in India being bundled out without showing much fight. Experienced players like Ajinkya Rahane and Cheteshwar Pujard were not able to show any resistance and it was ultimately too much to ask of from the lower order. Resuming the second session at 130/5, Pant and Jadeja managed to add 12 more runs to the total before Jadeja’s (16) stint at the crease came to an end as he was sent packing by Neil Wagner. The left-armer angled one across the channel, and Jadeja poked at the delivery, handing an easy catch to BJ Watling behind the stumps. Ravichandran Ashwin joined Pant in the middle and the duo managed to add 14 more runs to the total, but this partnership too came to an end in the 70th over as Pant (41) gifted his wicket to Trent Boult. Pant decided to step out and lofted the ball in the air. It was a casual end to what had been a fighting knock till then. Even though he did miss quite a few balls, he was looking to apply himself till Boult got the better of him. Henry Nicholls took a stunner to send Pant back as it was the beginning of the end of the India essay. In the very same over, Ashwin (7) was dismissed by Boult, and India was reduced to 156/8. Mohammed Shami did manage to add 13 valuable runs to the total, but in the end, it was all about waiting for the innings to end. Kyle Jamieson returned with two wickets while Boult picked three. Not to forget Wagner’s lion-hearted effort even though he had only one wicket to show for his efforts. In the first innings, a similar story unfolded as India suffered a collapse and the side was bowled out for 217. New Zealand was reduced to 192/7 at one stage in their innings but the lower-order came to the rescue and the Kiwis managed to take a lead of 32 runs. Brief Scores: India 217 and 170 (Rishabh Pant 41; Tim Southee 4-48); New Zealand 249 and 140/2 (Ross Taylor 47*, Kane Williamson 52*, Ravichandran Ashwin 2-17).