New Delhi, April 7 (IANS): Chinese smartphone brand Vivo on Wednesday announced that it has onboarded Virat Kohli as the company's brand ambassador. Kohli will be seen spreading awareness and promoting the launch of Vivo's upcoming products series in the pipeline. The association will include all 'Above the Line' (ATL) and 'Below the Line' (BTL) activities, including the brand's forthcoming TV campaigns and print, outdoor, social media and events. &

New Delhi, April 7 (IANS): The coronavirus pandemic struck India's 16-member judo squad forcing it to pull out of the Asian Oceania Olympic qualifiers that started on Tuesday in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan. "Withdrawal from the Olympic qualifiers has dashed national team's hopes of earning valuable points in order to win one continental quota place," a team member told IANS from Bishkek. Shushila Devi (women's 48kg), Jasleen Singh Saini (men's 66kg), Tulika Mann

Chennai, April 7 (IANS): Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) fast bowler Daniel Sams has tested positive for Covid-19, the Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise said in a statement on Wednesday. Sams had a negative report upon his arrival on April 3, but was found to be positive on Wednesday during the second round of testing, RCB said. "Sams is currently asymptomatic and he is currently in isolation at a designated medical facility. The RCB medical team is in constant touch w

Munich, April 7 (IANS): Bayern Munich will be without Serge Gnabry for their Champions League quarter-final first leg against Paris Saint-Germain on Wednesday after the winger tested positive for the coronavirus. The 25-year-old Gnabry "is feeling fine and is now quarantining at home," Bayern said on Tuesday. Earlier coach Hansi Flick told a news conference that Gnabry "has a sore throat and will most likely miss out. He added midfielder Marc Roca "got injured

Berlin, April 7 (IANS): A late Phil Foden goal for Manchester City secured a 2-1 win over Borussia Dortmund in the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final fixture. Foden on Tuesday guided an angled shot home from close-range after Ilkay Guendogan turned Kevin De Bruyne's pass back to him in the 89th minute, dpa news agency reported. De Bruyne had struck the first-half opener for City, after a mistake from Emre Can, but Marco Reus levelled six minutes from time on a

Madrid, April 7 (IANS): Real Madrid produced one of their best performances of the season to beat Liverpool 3-1 in the first leg of the Champions League quarter-finals. Madrid's preparations the game were disrupted by a positive Covid-19 test for central defender Raphael Varane before the game, but it didn't affect their performance on Tuesday night, Xinhua news reports. The first half saw Zinedine Zidane's side take a 2-0 lead as they controlled the play and made a m

New Delhi, April 6 (IANS) India fast bowler Shikha Pandey broke into the top 10 of the women's ODI bowlers' rankings while opener Smriti Mandhana and veteran pacer Jhulan Goswami remained unchanged. Smriti is seventh with 710 points, followed by Mithali Raj (709) at eighth spot in the batter's rankings. England's Tammy Beaumont (765) occupies the top spot. Australia's Alyssa Healy has risen to a career-best ranking of third with 753 points. Her compatriot, all

New Delhi, April 6 (IANS) Kolkata Knight Riders ended up on the losing side of the scrap for the final playoff spot in the Indian Premier League last season due to their poor net run rate as compared to SunRisers Hyderabad (SRH) and Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB). All three teams finished on 14 points but while SRH and RCB had net run rates of +0.608 and -0.172 respectively, KKR ended the season with -0.214, thus finishing fifth. One of the biggest factors affecting KKR last s

New Delhi, April 6 (PTI) Budding cricketers are not the only ones getting inspired by Mahendra Singh Dhoni's iconic helicopter shot as it has now become the inspiration for artisanal chocolates launched on Tuesday by food and beverage start-up 7InkBrews, where the former India captain is also a shareholder. The company based out of Mumbai is founded by Mohit Bhagchandani and co-founded by Adil Mistry and Kunal Patel. The new range of chocolates and beverages (non-alcoholic an

Madrid, April 6 (AP) A late winner by Ousmane Demb l gave Barcelona control of its own fate in the race for the Spanish league title. Demb l scored in the 90th minute on Monday as Barcelona defeated 10-man Valladolid 1-0 to move within a point of league leader Atl tico Madrid. Demb l scored with a left-footed shot from inside the area to make sure Barcelona can secure the title by winning all its remaining games, as it hosts Atl tico in one of the final rounds in May. This is

Miami, April 6 (AP) The next generation of men's tennis remains a jumble of unrealized potential. With Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer skipping the Miami Open, the tournament was expected to bring the game's new faces into sharper focus. Instead, the outlook remains fuzzy as the clay season begins. Sunday's match between No. 37-ranked Hubert Hurkacz and No. 31 Jannik Sinner was the first ATP Masters 1000 final since 2003 with two players ranked outside

Berlin, April 6 (IANS) The sports and interior minister for Berlin, Andreas Geisel, is open to the idea of a joint bid by Berlin and Tel Aviv to host the 2036 Olympic Games. This would "of course be a strong sign for peace and international understanding - in full awareness of our painful history and the abominable misuse of the Olympic idea by the National Socialists," Geisel told the Berliner Morgenpost paper, DPA reports. Tel Aviv and Berlin stand "for openness

Madrid, April 6 (IANS) Real Madrid coach Zinedine Zidane said he believes his side is undervalued as they prepare for their Champions League quarter-final first leg at home against Liverpool on Tuesday night. Tuesday marks the start of a vital week for Zidane's side, who faces Liverpool twice in eight days with the 'Clasico' at home to FC Barcelona sandwiched in the middle. Despite criticism this season, Real Madrid is now just two points off the top of the La Liga ta

Mumbai, April 6 (IANS) Former India wicket-keeper Kiran More, who is part of the staff at Mumbai Indians, has tested positive for Covid-19, a statement from the Mumbai Indians franchise said on Tuesday. More is a scout and wicket-keeping consultant with the Mumbai franchise. "Mr More is currently asymptomatic and has been isolated. Mumbai Indians and Kiran More have followed all the BCCI health guidelines. The MI medical team will continue to monitor Mr. More's health an

New Delhi, April 6 (IANS) Delhi Capitals captain Rishabh Pant hopes that his team can go one step further from last year and win the Indian Premier League (IPL) title. Pant, who will be captaining the team for the first time in place of the injured Shreyas Iyer, said that he is also looking forward to facing MS Dhoni's Chennai Super Kings in their first match of the season. "My first match as captain will be against Mahi (MS Dhoni) bhai. It will be a good experience for

Seoul, April 6 (AP): North Korea said it will not participate in the Tokyo Olympics because of the coronavirus pandemic. A website run by the North's sports ministry said the decision was made during a national Olympic Committee meeting on March 25 where members prioritized protecting athletes from the "world public health crisis caused by COVID-19." South Korea's Unification Ministry on Tuesday expressed regret over the North's decision, saying it had hoped

Our Correspondent Kohima | April 5 The Nagaland Wrestling Association (NWA) today informed that preparations are in good progress for the forthcoming 13th Open Naga Wrestling Championship 2021. This mega Championship has been scheduled for April 9 at Khuochiezie (Kohima Local Ground). Nagaland Youth Resources & Sports Advisor, Er. Zale Neikha and Planning & Coordination, Land Revenue & Parliamentary Affairs Minister, Neiba Kronu will grace the occasion as inaugura

ZUNHEBOTO, APRIL 5 (MExN): The Zünheboto District Football Association (ZDFA) will be organizing a penalty shootout tournament at Public Ground Zünheboto on April 10 to show support and solidarity to the district team who will be competing at the 21st Inter District Football Championship (Dr T. Ao Trophy) from April 12-19 in Kohima. In this connection, interested teams may contact the following numbers 8787617005/7085688017/9615777091 for registration, informed a press releas

Paris, April 5 (IANS) The US and French Open semi-finalist, 34-year-old Gael Monfils and WTA Tour star Elina Svitolina have announced their engagement on social media. Svitolina, who reached a career-high ranking of No. 3 in the world in 2017 and is currently ranked No. 5, posted a picture on Twitter of the couple at the base of snowy mountains with her ring on. She wrote: "YES!!! To the beginning of our forever." The duo had become fan favourites with their G.E.M.S. Li

Mumbai, April 5 (PTI) Delhi Capitals head coach Ricky Ponting has revealed that Prithvi Shaw refused to bat in the nets when he hit a bad patch in the last IPL and hoped that the highly-rated Indian youngster has changed his training habits "for the better" ahead of the upcoming edition. The former Australian skipper has been working with the 21-year-old for the past two seasons in the Delhi Capitals camp. He recalled how Shaw simply refused to pad up for nets when after s