Indian Sports Highlights, January 26: Archana & Sreeja reaches R16 after pulling upsets at WTT Star Contender

WTT Star Contender: Manika Batra reaches the round of 16 with a 3-1 win

Manika Batra has become the third Indian Women Singles player to reach the round of 16 at the WTT Star Contender in Goa. 

She takes a 11-6, 9-11, 11-9, 11-7 win over Korean player Suh Hyo Won in the round of 32. Earlier, Sreeja Akula and Archana Kamath also reached the final 16 after winning their respective matches.

Indonesia Masters 2024: Kiran George loses out in straight-game affair

Kiran George good run ends at the quarter-finals of Indonesia Masters Super 500 tournament. He lost 14-21, 6-21 to world champion Kunlavut Vitisdarn of Thailand.

With this, Indian campaign at the tournament is over in the quarterfinal stage itself.

Sri Lankan captain Chamari Athapaththu replaces Lauren Bell in WPL Season 2

The UP Warriorz, who finished third in the inaugural edition of the WPL, has drafted in Sri Lankan women’s cricket team skipper Chamari Athapaththu as a replacement for English fast bowler Lauren Bell ahead of the upcoming season of the Women’s Premier League 2024, scheduled to be held from Friday, February 23 to Sunday, March 17.

The English cricketer had been part of the UP Warriorz set-up in Season 1 of the WPL, which was played in Mumbai in 2023.

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ISSF World Cup: Sagar Dangi into the final of Men's 10m Air Pistol

Sagar shots a total of 582 points and finished on 5th position in the qualification round of 10m air Pistol event at the ISSF World Cup in Cairo, Egypt.

He will compete for the medal in the final at 5:15 PM IST.

Other two players Ujjawal Malik and Ravinder Singh misses out from the finals  with the score of 579 and 577 respectively.

Hockey5s Women World Cup: India wins 11-1 against New Zealand in Quarters

A dominant display from the Indian women Hockey5s team in the quarterfinals against New Zealand to book a place in the semis with a 11-1 victory.

They will play South Africa in the semis later tonight at 11:00 PM IST.

Indian shooting contingent gears up for first ISSF World Cup of 2024

Indian shooting contingent will be ready to first their bullets as the first ISSF World Cup of the Olympic year is set to begin in Cairo, Egypt from 26th January.

India is sending a big contingent of 49 shooters to the event.

While the Rifle and Pistol Shooters will be eyeing a good performance to ensure a place in the national Olympic trials come May, the Shotgunners will look to hold their place in the team and maintain high world rankings with as many as four spots, two in Trap and two in Skeet, still to be booked for Paris with a final qualifier event slated for April in Rio.

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Rohan Bopanna, Joshna Chinappa among sports icons nominated for Padma Shri Award

Tennis luminary Rohan Bopanna, set to become the oldest world number one, squash star Joshna Chinappa, and former archer turned coach Purnima Mahato have been shortlisted for the prestigious Padma Shri award in 2024. Bopanna's imminent ascent to the pinnacle of tennis adds an extra layer of significance to this honor, marking him as the oldest athlete poised to claim the No. 1 spot in the world doubles rankings.

The Padma Shri, India's fourth-highest civilian honor, stands as a testament to the remarkable achievements and dedication of these athletes. It follows closely behind the Bharat Ratna, Padma Vibhushan, and Padma Bhushan.

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What to follow today?

The WTT Star Contender main draw matches  will continue in Goa on Friday - Manika Batra will start her campaign in the women singles category.

Tata Steel Masters will resume after a rest day with the round 11 - D Gukesh, R Praggnanandhaa and Vidit Gujrathi will be in action.

Kiran George is a sole representation at the Indonesia Masters Super 500 tournament at the quarterfinal stage will play Kunlavut Vitisdarn on Friday.

ISSF Shooting World Cup will start in Cairo, Egypt with the finals of 10m air pistol to take place on Friday.

FIH Women Hockey5s world cup knockout matches will start where Indian team will be up against New Zealand in the Quarterfinals.

What happened on January 25?

Rohan Bopanna & Matthew Ebden are into the Australian Open 2024 Final. The Indo-Australian duo reach their 2nd consecutive Grand Slam final after beating Machac/Zhang 6-3, 3-6, 7-6 (10-7) in the semis - REPORT

The All India Football Federations' Technical Committee met virtually on Thursday, January 25, 2023, to recommend the names of the coaching staff of the Indian Senior Women's Team - REPORT

Archana Girish Kamath takes straight-set (7-11, 11-13, 10-12) win in the round of 64 of Women Singles category beating much higher ranked Mario Xiao of Spain at the WTT Star Contender in Goa, India.

Indian women's team takes the 7-2 victory over Namibia in the final group game of Hockey 5s world cup in Oman. with this, India books their spot in the quarterfinals after topping the group with 3/3 wins.

Indian youngster Kiran George continued his good run in the Indonesia Masters after defeating world number 18 Lu Guang Zu of China to enter the quarter-finals on Thursday while Lakshya Sen and Priyanshu Rajawat loses out in their respective second round matches - REPORT

Odisha FC takes a narrow 1-0 win over Mumbai City FC in the second semi-final of the Kalinga Super Cup at the Kalinga Stadium, Bhuvneshwar. Diego Mauricio scores the only goal of the match through the penalty in 44th minute.