Indian sports wrap, June 20: FIFA-AIFF talent academy now open in Hyderabad; junior gymnasts win Asian C’ships bronze

CRICKET

Andhra Premier League: Warriors, Lions win

Tungabhadra Warriors registered a six-wicket win against Bhimavaram Bulls in an Andhra Premier League clash at the Y.S. Raja Reddy Stadium here on Saturday,

Put to bat first, Bulls rode on T. Vigneswara Sai Sravan’s half-century (50, 32b, 6×4, 1×6) and B. Munish Varma’s cameo (35, 21b, 4×4, 1×6) to set a 154-run target.

Warriors’ chase started strong, thanks to skipper C.R. Gnaneshwar’s fifty (75, 56b, 9×4, 2×6), before K. Satya Surya Jayanth’s measured innings (46, 33b, 5×4, 2×6) took the team home with 12 balls to spare.

-Team Sportstar

Adamas Howrah Warriors make Bengal T20 League 2026 final

Sujata Dey scored a half-century and Sreyoshi Aich captured four wickets as Adamas Howrah Warriors defeated Shrachi Rarh Tigers by 19 runs in the semifinals to book a spot in the women’s title clash of the Bengal T20 League at the Jadavpur University Ground here on Saturday.

Warriors posted a challenging 159 for five before restricting Rarh Tigers to 140 for nine.

Warriors’ openers Ankita Chakraborty (46, 42b, 6×4) and Sujata (77, 56b, 6×4, 4×6) gathered 106 runs to lay a solid foundation by the 14 ^th over. The left-handed Sujata impressed by hitting her sixes on the onside.

Bristi Majhi’s lone fight (97 n.o., 61b, 6×4, 8×6) was in vain as she ran out of partners. Warriors’ Sreyoshi (4/18) and Remondina Khatun (2/23) did most of the damage.

Warriors will meet Murshidabad Kueens, which beat Servotech Siliguri Strikers by seven wickets. Tanushree Sarkar (three wickets and 26 runs) and Shivanshi Tiwari (58 n.o., 55b, 8×4) contributed in Kueens’ win.

In the men’s competition, captain Shahbaz Ahmed’s all-round showing, Rohit Kumar’s four wicket-haul and Sumanta Gupta’s unbeaten 47 helped Shrachi Rarh Tigers record a commanding seven-wicket win over Novus Royals Purulia and earn a place in the final.

Men: Nous Royals Purulia 107 in 18.2 overs (Lokesh 48, Shahbaz Ahmed 2/31, Rohit Kumar 4/24, Sukhmeet Singh 2/7) lost to Shrachi Rarh Tigers 110/3 in 12.1 overs (Sumanta Gupta 47 n.o., Shahbaz Ahmed 31).

Women: Adamas Howrah Warriors 159/5 in 20 overs (Ankita Chakraborty 46, Sujata Dey 77, Piyali Ghosh 3/24) bt Shrachi Rarh Tigers 140/9 in 20 overs (Bristi Majhi 97 n.o., Remondina Khatun 2/23, Sreyoshi Aich 4/18); Servotech Siliguri Strikers 129/7 in 20 overs (Dyuti Paul 49, Priyanka Bala 45, Jahnabi Paswan 2/22, Tanushree Sarkar 3/30) lost to Murshidabad Kueens 130/3 in 18.1 overs (Shivanshi Tiwari 58, Tanushree Sarkar 26).

-Team Sportstar

FOOTBALL

FIFA-AIFF Telangana Talent Academy for boys and girls inaugurated in Hyderabad

In a significant initiative in Indian football’s talent development ecosystem, the FIFA-AIFF Telangana Academy for boys and girls was launched here.

Located at the Gachibowli Stadium Complex here, the Academy will provide year-round high-performance training, with residential facilities, education, medical care, nutrition, and mental wellness to the young talent of Indian football.

The Academy was inaugurated by Telangana Governor Shiv Pratap Shukla in the presence of Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy on Friday.

“The boys’ programme is the second such project in the country (after Bhubaneswar), while the girls’ programme is the first in India and only the second of its kind in the world after Hong Kong,” the AIFF said in a release.

“The establishment of the FIFA-AIFF Telangana Talent Academy, under FIFA’s Talent Development Scheme, has been made possible through the collaboration between FIFA, AIFF, the Government of Telangana and the Sports Authority of Telangana.”

-PTI

SQUASH

Asian doubles squash: Abhay-Velavan storm into final

India’s Abhay Singh and Velavan Senthilkumar stayed on course for their title defence after storming into the final of the third Asian Doubles Squash Championships in Sarawak, Malaysia on Saturday.

Abhay and Velavan defeated Japan’s Naoki Hayashi and Ren Makino 11-3 10-12 11-5 in the quarterfinals, before registering a 11-7 11-9 win over Malaysian third seeds Sanjay Jeeva and Duncan Lee in the semifinals.

The Indian top seed will meet second-seeded Pakistan pair of Nasir Iqbal and Noor Zaman in the final on Sunday.

Women’s second seed Joshna Chinappa and Rathika Seelan lost to Malaysian top seeded pair of Ainaa Amani and Yee Xin Ying 9-11 7-11 in the semifinals.

In mixed doubles, second seeded combination of Joshna and Velavan, bronze medallist last year, went down to fifth seeded Malaysian pair of Ainaa Amani and Md Kamal 8-11 11-8 8-11.

Both pairs secured bronze medals.

-Team Sportstar

GYMNASTICS

India’s junior men’s artistic gymnastics team wins bronze at Asian Championships

India’s junior men’s artistic gymnastics team scripted history by clinching the bronze medal at the Asian Championships.

Competing against some of the continent’s strongest sides, the young Indian team of Harschit Damodaran, Nishad Narvane, SK Nabigh Ali, Akshat Bajaj and Mohammed Zaid Ansari delivered a creditable performance to finish third with 224.493 points at Zunyi in China on Friday.

China claimed the gold medal with 241.458 points, while Japan took silver with 239.461.

-PTI

GOLF

Harjai, Krish win APGC Jr Championship boys title for India

Colombo: Harjai Milkha Singh, son of the legendary Jeev Milkha Singh, partnered with Krish Chawla to help India clinch the boy’s team title at the prestigious APGC Junior Golf Championship at the Royal Colombo Golf Club here.

With a combined score of nine-under par, the Indian duo finished one shot ahead of South Korea’s Jeyi Son and Jiyul Chun and Thailand’s Jessada Chuangprayoon and Takrit Supagonchoowong to secure the title on Friday.

Harjai dished out a brilliant performance finishing runner-up, three shots behind South Korea’s Jeyi Son with an overall score of seven-under 206 (69-70-67).

On the other hand, Krish ended tied sixth with a total score of two-under 211 (75-67-69).

But the Indian girls’ team of Guntas Kaur Sandhu (18th) and Rashi Mishra (19th) disappointed.

“It gives me immense pride that I could contribute to the boys team victory at the APGC Junior Championship,” Harjai said in a release.

“The Royal Colombo Golf Club was a real test and keeping my head calm inspite of some of the best players from Asia-Pacific region playing in it makes me happier.” Organised by the Asia-Pacific Golf Confederation, the three-day tournament witnessed participation from 64 junior golfers from 15 countries. The participating nations were Singapore, South Korea, Chinese Taipei, India, China, Hong Kong, Thailand, Myanmar, Oman, Qatar, Jordan, Malaysia, the United Arab Emirates, the Philippines and hosts Sri Lanka.

-Team Sportstar

Saptak Talwar in top 20 at English Open

Saptak Talwar carded a round of 1-under 71, his second straight under par round, to be inside the top-20 at the English Open.

Talwar is now placed T-18 on the leaderboard with a total score of 4-under par with 69-71.

George Bloor and John Catlin shared the lead as both players had a total score of 10-under par.

Bloor carded a second round of 3-under 69 to take his score to 10-under par (65-69), while Catlin carded 6-under 66 to become joint leader at 10-under par (68-66).

Talwar began his second round on the back nine with a birdie but a bogey on the 18th hole saw him begin the front nine with a score of even par for the day.

On the front nine a bogey would see Talwar play most of the round with an above par score for the day before making consecutive birdies on the eighth and ninth holes to end the day with a score of 1-under 71 and a total of 4-under par.

Veer Ahlawat missed the cut after carding 4-over 76 on the second day. His total score after the second round was 5-over par (73-76). The cut was set at 1-under par and Ahlawat needed a stronger second round to play over the weekend.

Matthis Besard is two strokes behind the leaders in third place with a score of 8-under par (67-69).

-PTI

Avani, Diksha off to flying start at Dutch Ladies Open

India’s women golfers continued their encouraging run on the Ladies European Tour (LET) as Avani Prashanth and Diksha Dagar produced impressive opening rounds to share fifth place on the opening day at the Dutch Ladies Open.

The duo carded three-under-par 69s at Goyer Golf & Country Club, just one stroke behind the quartet of leaders.

Pranavi Urs endured a comparatively quiet day as she mixed one birdie with two bogeys for a one-over 73 to be tied for 58th. With the projected cut around one-over, Pranavi is well placed to secure a weekend berth.

It was a disappointing opening day for Hitaashee Bakshi, who struggled to find rhythm.

Her roller-coaster card featured two birdies but also seven bogeys, one double bogey and one triple bogey as she slumped to an 82, leaving her tied for 132nd. She will need a remarkable second-round recovery.

At the top of the leaderboard are four players, Sweden’s Lisa Pettersson, Norway’s Dorthea Forbrigd, Northern Ireland’s Olivia Mehaffey and Italy’s Alessandra Fanali who shared the lead after opening with four-under-par 68s.

Diksha meanwhile, showcased the consistency that has made her one of India’s most reliable performers.

Starting from the back nine, the left-hander compiled a flawless bogey-free round, picking up birdies on the 12th, 15th and 17th holes.

She parred all the holes on her second nine, which was the front stretch of the course. She did not looked troubled throughout the day, finding fairways and greens with regularity to finish alongside Avani in the group tied for fifth.

Avani showed tremendous character after an early setback. Beginning her round on the back nine, she dropped a shot on the 12th hole and turned in one-over par.

However, the Bengaluru golfer produced an excellent response on her second nine, opening with a birdie on the first before adding three more on the fourth, fifth and seventh holes to sign for a bogey-free inward nine of 32 and finish with a three-under 69.

-PTI

OTHER SPORTS

Bridge: Defending champions India set stage for Asia’s premier bridge showdown

The 5th Bonus Asia Cup Bridge Championships will feature nearly 300 players and officials representing 46 teams from 16 countries and territories, with defending champions India set to compete against the region’s best in the event starting here on Sunday.

The championships, to be held at Taj Cidade de Goa Horizon, will witness participation from Australia, Bangladesh, China, Chinese Taipei, Hong Kong China, Indonesia, Japan, Kuwait, Malaysia, New Zealand, Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Thailand, United Arab Emirates and hosts India.

India will enter the tournament with a strong contingent after enjoying success in the previous edition, where its seniors team won the gold medal while Puja Batra and Asha Sharma claimed the women’s pairs title.

The Indian squad, comprising Asian Games medallists and national champions, will face stiff competition from Hong Kong, the defending men’s team champions, and Indonesia, the defending women’s and mixed team champions.

Qualification rounds across men’s, women’s, mixed and senior team championships will be held from June 22-25. The semi-finals of the team events will be played on June 26, while the championship will conclude on June 27 with team finals and pairs finals.

The opening ceremony will be graced by Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant in the presence of World Bridge Federation (WBF) president Franck Riehm, industrialist H M Bangur and senior officials from the Sports Authority of India, Asia Pacific Bridge Federation and Bridge Federation of India (BFI).

BFI president Prasad Keni described the championship as the “Asian Games of bridge”, saying the event featuring men’s, women’s, mixed and senior categories under WBF guidelines represented the highest level of competition.

“This is a proud moment for India as we welcome the finest minds in bridge from across the continent,” Keni said.

WBF president Franck Riehm said India has huge potential in the sport and hosting such a major event highlighted the country’s growing role in world bridge.

“Bridge is not just a game, it’s a mind sport. Playing bridge helps people stay mentally sharp,” Riehm said.

At the previous Asia Cup, Hong Kong won the men’s team championship, while Indonesia dominated the women’s and mixed team categories.

India’s seniors team comprising Hemant Jalan, Kamal Mukherjee, Subrata Saha, Sukamal Das, Badal Das and Pronab Bardhan clinched the gold medal.

-PTI

Published on Jun 20, 2026