Sports World: Magpies Thrash Spurs 4-0; Airee-Powered Nepal Beat Qatar In Premier Cup - As It Happened

Grand Slam title winners Naomi Osaka, Iga Swiatek and Emma Raducanu all won in Billie Jean King Cup qualifying.

Osaka hit 15 aces and put Japan a step away from reaching the BJK Cup Finals with a 6-2 7-6(5) win over Kazakhstan's Yulia Putintseva on Friday. It was the four-time Grand Slam champion's first match in the team competition since February 2020.

In other action, No. 1-ranked Swiatek and Poland went ahead 2-0 at Switzerland, 2021 US Open champion Raducanu helped Britain finish Day 1 tied 1-1 at France, the United States led Belgium 2-0, Ukraine won both matches against Romania, Germany was ahead of host Brazil 2-0, host Australia took a 2-0 lead over Mexico, and Slovakia was up 2-0 against visiting Slovenia. (AP)

Delhi Capitals young batting sensation Jake Fraser-McGurk says if he could handle the nerves on his IPL debut, the credit goes to coach Ricky Ponting, who advised him to time the ball instead of swinging his bat wildly. Fraser-McGurk, who turned 22 on Thursday, was handed debut on Friday against Lucknow Super Giants. Fraser-McGurk, who holds the record for the fastest List A century in 29 balls, seized the opportunity with both hands, smashing a 35-ball 55 to set up their six-wicket win, that helped move up from the bottom of the standings. (PTI)

Indian wrestler Radhika has moved to the final of women's 68 kg event.

Nepal are off to a smashing start in their ACC Men's T20I Premier Cup 2024 clash against Qatar in Al Amerat. Rohit Paudel's team scored 56 runs for the loss of opener Kushal Bhurtel's wicket in the first six overs, making full use of the powerplay restrictions.

Paudel has also been dismissed since, however. Aasif Sheikh (33 not out off 21 balls) is still at the crease, and has just been joined by Kushal Malla (0 not out off 1 ball). The scoreboard reads 67/2 after 8.1 overs.

The Indian men's hockey team failed to avoid a 0-5 series whitewash after going down 2-3 in the fifth Test against Australia in Perth, completing a nightmare of a tour. The Indians entered the final game of the series after losing their previous four matches 1-5, 2-4, 1-2 and 1-3. The rubber was significant as far as preparation is concerned ahead of the upcoming Paris Olympics.

Skipper Harmanpreet Singh (4th) and Boby Singh Dhami (53rd) were the goal scorers for India, while Australia sounded the board through Jeremy Hayward (20th), Ky Willott (38th) and Tim Brand (39th).

India's fastest rally driver Gaurav Gill of JK Tyre put himself in contention for a podium finish after grabbing a top-three place at the end of the opening day of the Otago Rally in New Zealand.

Gill and his New-Zealand-based co-driver Jared Hudson were third on the timesheets, a little over 30 seconds behind overall leader Jack Hawkeswood and 11 seconds adrift of second-placed Robbie Stokes.

Ankita Raina could not win the crucial second singles and later lost the decisive doubles match with partner Prarthana Thombare, as a historic play-offs place slipped out of India's grasp after a 1-2 defeat to New Zealand in the Billie Jean King Cup in Changsha, China. India remained in Asia/Oceania Group I by finishing third in the tournament.

Debutants Namdhari FC finished in the ninth position in the I-League 2023-24, as they inflicted a crushing 4-1 defeat on Real Kashmir FC at the TRC Football Turf. Namdhari FC thus ended their campaign with 27 points from 24 matches. They won seven matches, drew six and lost the rest.

Nepal have surged to the driver's seat against Qatar in their ACC Men's T20I Premier Cup clash. Rohit Paudel and Co first posted a mammoth 210 runs on the board in the first innings, and have now reduced Qatar to 132/7 after 15.3 overs. With just three wickets in hand, getting 75 more runs off 26 balls appears well nigh impossible.

Nepal's 24-year-old all-rounder Dipendra Singh Airee has smashed his way into the record books once again. After striking six sixes in a row across two overs during the Hangzhou Asian Games, Airee has now bludgeoned six sixes in a single over, becoming the third man after Yuvraj Singh and Kieron Pollard to achieve the feat in T20 internationals.

The hard-hitting batter singled out Qatar medium pacer Kamran Khan for special treatment in the final over of the Nepal innings at the ACC Men's T20I Premier Cup 2024. The score, which read 174 for 7 after 19 overs, sped to 210/7 at the end of 20 overs, with Airee finishing unbeaten at 64 runs off just 21 balls.

Despite some resistance lower down the order from Qatar, Nepal emerge victorious by 32 runs in the ACC Premier Cup T20I match. Chasing Nepal's target of 211 runs, Qatar could only muster 178/9 in 20 overs. After his record-equalling six sixes, Dipendra Singh Airee picks up two wickets to boot and is the Player Of The Match for his all-round efforts.

Alexander Isak smashed his way through the 20-goal barrier as Newcastle United boosted their European hopes by denting those of Tottenham Hotspur. The Magpies’ £63million record signing produced two sumptuous finishes either side of Anthony Gordon’s strike to take his tally for the campaign to 21, before Fabian Schar’s thunderous late header secured a 4-0 win in the English Premier League at St James’ Park.

Bayern Munich forward Kingsley Coman was carried off the field during the club's Bundesliga match against Cologne, making the French winger a doubt for Wednesday's UEFA Champions League clash with Arsenal. Coman went off early in the second half after pulling up in apparent pain and clutching his right groin.

He was replaced by Jamal Musiala in the 49th minute and had to be supported off by two of Bayern's medical staff.

Wrexham completed back-to-back promotions in style with a 6-0 thumping of Forest Green. Elliot Lee opened the scoring before Paul Mullin scored twice, either side of Ryan Inniss’ own goal, as Wrexham hit four before the break, with Ryan Barnett and Jack Marriott finding the net in the second half. (Stats Perform)

NorthEast United FC ended their Indian Super League campaign with a resounding 3-0 victory over Odisha FC at the Indira Gandhi Athletic Stadium in Guwahati on Saturday. Though the Highlanders were unable to qualify for the playoffs, they gave a good account of themselves against the Juggernauts, who succumbed to their third loss in their last five games. (PTI)

Manchester City kept up the pressure on Arsenal and Liverpool with an emphatic 5-1 victory over relegation-threatened Luton on Saturday that put the defending champion back atop the English Premier League. An early own goal from Daiki Hashioka gave City the lead at Etihad Stadium before a fierce shot by Mateo Kovacic and a penalty by Erling Haaland put the game beyond doubt after the break. (AP)