Category: Sports

One of India’s finest white-ball openers, Shikhar Dhawan, has announced that he is retiring from international and domestic cricket.

He wrote on Instagram, “As I close this chapter of my cricketing journey, I carry countless memories and gratitude. Thank you for the love and support.”

He thanked the Indian Cricket Board, saying, “I am grateful to the BCCI for giving me the opportunity. I tell myself that I am not sad that I will not play for the country again. But I am happy to have played for my country, which is my biggest thing. I am standing where there are only memories to look back on and the whole world to look forward to. I always had only one goal to play for India, and that happened. Thank you, family, team and BCCI.”

Dhawan represented India in 34 Tests, 167 ODIs and 68 T20 matches.

Harry Potter author JK Rowling has deleted at least 27 tweets after Imane Khelif, the Algerian boxer who won gold in the women’s welterweight category at the Paris Olympics, filed a lawsuit against her, Elon Musk, and Donald Trump for online harassment.

Social media users noticed Rowling’s effort to reduce online presence during increased scrutiny. Despite this, some of Rowling’s retweets are still visible, including one about a similar controversy involving another female athlete, Taiwan’s Lin Yu-ting.

Read This: Imane Khelif takes Elon Musk and JK Rowling to court

Imane has spoken about the emotional stress caused by the criticism but remains firm in defending her right to compete. While Rowling’s silence has raised eyebrows, Khelif’s resilience stands out in adversity.

Background:

This issue started when the Algerian boxer filed a cyberbullying case against Elon Musk, JK Rowling, and Donald Trump, claiming she faced “aggravated cyber-harassment,” which her lawyer, Nabil Boudi, described as a “misogynist, racist, and sexist campaign.”

Her lawyer stated that JK Rowling and Elon Musk participated in this campaign. The issue began when American swimmer Riley Gaines posted a picture of Khelif with the caption, “Men don’t belong in women’s sports.” Musk then shared the post, agreeing with it.

Rowling also criticized Khelif’s involvement, stating on X, “Could any picture sum up our new men’s rights movement better? The smirk of a male who knows he’s protected by a misogynist sporting establishment, enjoying the distress of a woman he’s just punched in the head and whose life’s ambition he’s just shattered.”

Khelif faced racist attacks after Italy’s Angela Carini withdrew from her Round of 16 fight against Khelif just 46 seconds into the match, saying she had never been struck this hard.

President Thomas Bach of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) supported Khelif, saying, “Women should be allowed to compete in women’s events.”

Khelif made history as the first Algerian woman to win an Olympic gold medal in boxing. She won the final match against China’s Yang Liu with a score of 5-0 and also secured impressive victories over Thailand’s Janjaem Suwannapheng and Hungary’s Luca Anna Hamori.

Pakistan boxer Muhammad Wasim will likely miss the World Boxing Federation (WBF) bantamweight title fight in Malta after delays in Danish embassy releasing his passport.

Boxer wrote a message on X (formerly Twitter), tagging Chief Minister Punjab Maryam Nawaz, stating, “Honorable @MaryamNSharif, I am in a stressful situation, so I get my passport back so I can travel and join my training camp in the UK. I have a fight coming up with my passport stuck, and I need help from the Government of Pakistan.”

He submitted his passport on July 22 for Denmark visa. With the fight near, he is likely to miss the training camp because of the delayed passport.

A murder case has been filed against Bangladesh’s star cricket all-rounder and former Awami League Member of Parliament Shakib Al Hasan in Dhaka.

Bangladeshi media reports that authorities have charged him along with former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina for the murder of an employee of a garment factory in Dhaka.

Hasina resigned from the Prime Minister post on August 5 after student protests led to widespread unrest. She is now in India. The cricketer is representing his national team in the Rawalpindi Test against Pakistan.

Pakistani women fighters won gold medals in the Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) Asian Championship held in Lahore.

National fighter Bano Butt won a gold medal in junior and Eman Khan in senior categories. No opponent could stand up to both fighters. Pakistan’s Bushra Ahmed won the silver medal in bantamweight.

In the men’s events, Pakistan’s Shahab Khan, Zeeshan Akbar, and Abdul Manan won silver medals in various categories. A total of 180 athletes from 23 countries participated in this event.

England’s Warwickshire Cricket County has taken full responsibility for the treatment of cricketer Hasan Ali’s elbow after Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) refused to take the responsibility.

The bowler suffered an elbow injury while representing Warwickshire during county cricket this year, after which the pacer returned home without playing full matches.

According to Geo News, Hasan Ali had contacted PCB for treatment, after which the board asked Warwickshire County to treat him instead.

PCB is of the opinion that since Hasan Ali left the national team fully fit and healthy for county cricket, it is now the county’s responsibility to get him fully fit and healthy.

Warwickshire has accepted responsibility for all treatments. The fast bowler will likely go to England for treatment soon.

India’s Olympic silver medalist javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra and bronze medalist Manu Bhaker have made a mark in their respective sports and left many big names behind in the race for net worth and brand value.

Neeraj has started to overtake Indian cricketers in contracts, while major companies are eyeing two-time Paris Olympics bronze medalist shooter Manu for contracts.

According to Indian media, the brand value of both has increased tremendously, up to 330 crore Indian rupees (More than 1,100 PKR).

Before the Olympics, Neeraj Chopra’s brand value was equal to that of Indian all-rounder Hardik Pandya, but now it is expected to skyrocket, potentially surpassing Pandya’s and making him the highest-valued non-cricketer athlete.

22-year-old Manu has attracted the attention of companies with extraordinary speed. She recently signed an ambassador contract with a beverage company for one and a half crore Indian rupees.

Before the Paris Olympics, her contract fee was 25 lakh per year, and her management company revealed that 40 brands wanted to sign contracts with the bronze medalist.

Despite not winning a medal, wrestler Vinesh Phogat’s brand value is increasing; his annual fee is now INR one crore, up from 25 lakh INR.