Sports World: Virat Kohli Likely To Miss Tests Three And Four; Qatar Reach AFC Asian Cup Final - As It Happened

Qatar will meet Jordan in the AFC Asian Cup 2023 final after clinching a memorable 3-2 win. Meanwhile, in Ivory Coast, Nigeria face South Africa and the hosts take on DR Congo in a pair of ties that will determine the AFCON 2023 finalists overnight.

Reports suggested that Virat Kohli could miss 3rd and 4th Test against England; there are also doubts over his inclusion for the fifth Test. Elsewhere, the build-up to the second ICC U-19 World Cup semi-final continued, with Australia and Pakistan bidding to join India in the final. Here are the highlights from sports world today. (Cricket News | Football News)

It is the silver jubilee of an iconic moment in Indian cricket, nay, Indian sport. Legendary spinner and former India captain Anil Kumble snapped up all 10 wickets in the fourth innings of the second India vs Pakistan Test in Delhi, circa February 7, 1999.

Kumble single-handedly, literally, flattened the arch-rivals' hopes of chasing down the target of 420 runs, bowling them out for 207 in 60.3 overs. Kumble's figures read 26.3-9-74-10, as he emulated England's Jim Laker in picking up all 10 wickets to fall in an innings. New Zealand's Ajaz Patel later became only the third player to do this in a Test match, against India in December 2021.

In what could be a major fillip to the American T20 league Major League Cricket, celebrated former Australia captain Ricky Ponting has signed on as the new head coach for Washington Freedom, ahead of MLC's second season. Ponting has signed a two-year deal with the franchise and will succeed countryman and Sydney Sixers coach Greg Shipperd in the role.

New Zealand's domination all through the opening Test has resulted in an inevitable victory for them against the inexperienced South Africa. Chasing a gigantic target of 529, the Proteas were bowled out for 247, with Kyle Jamieson and Mitchell Santner doing the bulk of the damage. With the 281-run thrashing, the Kiwis now lead the two-match series 1-0 and will head to Hamilton with a clean sweep in sight.

In heartening news for fans, Delhi Capitals coach Ricky Ponting has said that Rishabh Pant is "very confident" of playing the entire season of IPL 2024. However, Ponting is unsure of whether the destructive batter-wicketkeeper will be able to captain for the whole tournament or keep wickets, given he is still recovering from the injuries he sustained in a major car accident in December 2022.

Defending champions Sunrisers Eastern Cape have reached their second consecutive SA20 final after notching up a comprehensive 51-run win over Durban's Super Giants in the rain-affected Qualifier 1 in Cape Town. The match had to be stopped for nearly an hour due to heavy rain, but no overs were lost. The final will be played on Saturday at the same venue, while the eliminator and second qualifier will take place in Johannesburg.

Jasprit Bumrah stands unrivalled, yet again. Notching up another first in a career burgeoning with trailblazing performances, Bumrah has become the first-ever Indian pacer to be ranked number one in the International Cricket Council's Test bowling rankings. Bumrah, with 881 points, has displaced teammate and ace spinner Ravichandran Ashwin from the top spot. Bumrah's maiden rise to the top was catalysed by an outstanding performance in the second Test against England, where he returned superb match figures of 9/91 and propelled his team to a series-equalling 106-run victory in Visakhapatnam.

After a pulsating India vs South Africa semi-final, the ICC Under-19 Cricket World Cup 2024 will now move on to the other last-four clash which promises to be as thrilling. Pakistan will take on Australia with the aim of setting up a mouth-watering final between the sub-continental arch-rivals.

Check out the key battles in the PAK vs AUS game in our report here.

The 25th Laureus World Sports Awards will take place in Madrid, Spain on April 22, PTI reports. Many of the biggest names from the world of sport, past and present, will be present to honour the greatest sportsmen, sportswomen and teams from 2023.

Each of the winners will receive a coveted Laureus statuette, one of the most recognisable symbols of excellence in sport. The awards ceremony will take place at the Palacio de Cibeles, one of Madrid's most iconic buildings, a statement said.

It has been a crazy tournament for hosts of the Africa Cup of Nations 2023, Ivory Coast, who are fighting for a place in the final against DR Congo, despite coming face-to-face with unceremonious exits multiple times.

Incredibly, following their win in the competition opener against Guinea-Bissau, Ivory Coast lost successive group games, finished third, and qualified for the knockouts by a margin of two goals.

They, then, dragged reigning champions Senegal level in the round-of-16 with four minutes of regulation time left before beating them on penalties. Finally, thanks to a goal in the 90th and another in the 120th, they disposed of Mali in the quarters to advance to the penultimate round!

Former Manchester United star Jessie Lingard, who last played for Nottingham Forest in the Premier League, is on the verge of joining FC Seoul in South Korea! This move comes as a surprise for the 31-year-old attacker, who has also enjoyed a successful temporary spell with West Ham United - and with whom he was deemed to be training this summer.

Barely five minutes have been played in the second semi-final of the AFC Asian Cup 2023 and IR Iran are in the lead against reigning champions Qatar, Sardar Azmoun putting the former winners ahead with a fourth-minute goal. The winner of the tie will face Jordan in the final.

The news Indian cricket fans were dreading seems to be true: Virat Kohli, as reported, will miss the third and fourth Test matches against England, while his involvement in the fifth game is also in doubt. Kohli is on a personal leave away from the team, with his former teammate AB de Villiers revealing that he and Anushka Sharma are expecting a second child.

Chelsea will travel to Aston Villa for their 4th Round Replay. Pressure is mounting on Blues boss Mauricio Pochettino after two back-to-back defeats in the league. Another defeat and it fans will already dreading for a new boss. Mourinho anyone!?

Qatar have beaten Iran in a thrilling 3-2 win in their AFC Asian Cup semi-final clash on Wednesday.

The Indian women's hockey team lost 0-3 to third ranked Australia, completing a hat-trick of defeats in the FIH Hockey Pro League 2023-24 on Wednesday. Australia captain Grace Stewart (19th minute), Tatum Stewart (23rd) and Kaitlin Nobbs (55th) were the goalscorers for the winners in the match played at Kalinga Stadium.

Australia U19 vs Pakistan U19 in semi-final 2 of the U-19 Cricket World Cup. Also, updates from the AFC Asian Cup and AFCON.

It's good night from all of us here! Catch you tomorrow.