India vs Pakistan, ACC Women’s Asia Cup 2026 Preview: When and where …

India vs Pakistan, ACC Women’s Asia Cup 2026: Live streaming details

The India vs Pakistan, ACC Women’s Asia Cup 2026 match at the Dubai International Stadium will start from 8:00PM (IST) onwards with the live streaming available on the Sony LIV app/website as well as the Sony Sports network on television screens.

Bengaluru, September 4, 2026: The fourth edition of the Global Chess League (GCL), a joint initiative of Tech Mahindra and FIDE, promises to be a scintillating affair as world number one Magnus Carlsen returns after a year’s hiatus to strengthen defending champions Alpine APL Pipers, while two-time champions Triveni Continental Kings retain their core group with an eye on a third title in four years.

The Global Chess League has emerged as one of the most coveted team competitions in the world chess calendar and will be hosted in India for the second consecutive year. Season 4 has attracted some of the world’s best players for the nine-day competition, which will see six teams face off in a double round-robin format, with the top two teams advancing to the Grand Finale on September 13, 2026.

Speaking at a press conference ahead of the competition, Peeyush Dubey, Chairman, Tech Mahindra Global Chess League , said, ” We at the Global Chess League (GCL) have always believed that chess is a sport that a family can enjoy together. Chess can be a festival, and that is exactly the revolution that we are seeing. I am very happy to say that Season 4 of the Global Chess League is bigger and better in every single aspect than what we have seen. We have some of the best global players with us in Bangalore and some of the biggest companies in the world supporting this movement. ”

Apart from Carlsen, 2026 Candidates winner Javokhir Sindarov, Alireza Firouzja, Maxime Vachier-Lagrave, Viswanathan Anand and Ian Nepomniachtchi will lead their respective teams as icon players.

Carlsen played for the Pipers in the first two seasons, held in Dubai and London, but pulled out of the last season in Mumbai, where the team went on to deny Triveni Continental Kings a third consecutive title. The Pipers have strengthened their squad further, bringing in India’s first-ever Women’s World Cup winner Divya Deshmukh to join experienced campaigner Koneru Humpy on the women’s board, while Dutch GM Anish Giri and India’s Vidit Gujrathi will shoulder the responsibility on the other two men’s boards.

Asked about his return to the competition, the Norwegian Grandmaster insisted that he loves the format and is focused on doing his best to help the team retain the title. “I am a little bit surprised to be back, seeing as we had a couple of really frustrating years for the team – the first two years when I was playing. And then when I was away, the team won it all. So this time I’m just trying to do my best to not do any worse than last year,” said Carlsen.

The GCL has also worked on taking the overall experience of watching chess to the next level with every edition, and the fourth edition will witness several new innovations.

Gourav Rakshit, Commissioner, Tech Mahindra Global Chess League, said , “Our endeavour at the Global Chess League (GCL) is to really make this game come to life for audiences that may or may not understand it to the level that they need to. So we are bringing in innovations towards that particular end. Our philosophy is that chess doesn’t need drama to be manufactured. It’s our responsibility to bring that drama out in front for the audiences and screens.”

While spectators at the venue will continue to watch the matches and analysis on the big screen inside the playing hall and listen to commentary through personalised headsets, fans across the country can play along with the Grandmasters on the GCL app and test their own skills against the best in the world.

Apart from the main stream covering the entire match, fans can also focus on any particular board or player, while spectators can follow the reactions of other team members from the team dugout. This year, the league will also equip team coaches and captains with heart-rate monitors to track their stress levels during the matches.

Season 4 will kick off with a blockbuster opening match between PBG Alaskan Knights and Fyers American Gambits on Saturday, followed by Triveni Continental Kings taking on Ganges Grandmasters and CheQ Mumba Masters facing defending champions Alpine APL Pipers.
While Carlsen’s return to the competition has been the biggest talking point of Season 4, 15-year-old Turkish GM Yagiz Kaan Erdogmus will make his GCL debut for Alaskan Knights alongside legendary Indian Grandmaster Viswanathan Anand.

The 56-year-old Anand, who represented Ganges Grandmasters in the first three seasons, has moved to Alaskan Knights this year and will lead one of the youngest squads in the tournament, which also boasts India’s Arjun Erigaisi and Abhimanyu Mishra, who will make his league debut on the Prodigy board.

“It’s going to be an amazing experience for me to play with Vishy and Arjun. We have a very strong team and it’s my first time here. I am really excited to play here. I hope we can win the tournament, ” said Erdogmus.

Meanwhile, two-time champions Triveni Continental Kings have retained their established core, with Alireza Firouzja leading the team on the icon board and being well supported by Wei Yi, Alexandra Kosteniuk and Zhu Jiner.

Speaking about her team’s preparation, former women’s world champion Kosteniuk said, “I am very happy and excited to once again play for Triveni Continental Kings. It is a good feeling that we have won this title twice before, but it will be even nicer to add a third one here. So that’s what we are aiming for.”

CheQ Mumba Masters, led by Maxime Vachier-Lagrave, and Fyers American Gambits, led by Sindarov, are also confident of finding the winning momentum this season.

Maxime said , “Yeah, in general, I am very happy with our team and the team spirit we build. We build it every season, in and out. So I think that’s one of our big strengths. It hasn’t materialised on the board in the last three seasons, but I’m very happy with Mumba Masters and the trust they have in me. And I hope I can help them and give back some of that trust on the chessboard as well – not only in the team spirit, but also by helping us win the whole thing.”

Sindarov, who will be playing on the icon board in the GCL for the first time, said he enjoys the league’s format and now has the added responsibility of playing on the first board.

Fans across India can watch the matches live for free on the official Tech Mahindra Global Chess League YouTube channel. The broadcast will also be available on the Chess24 YouTube and Twitch channels, as well as Chess.com India. For the first time this season, Hindi-language commentary will be provided for the Indian audience.

Follow Revsportz for latest sports news

The post Tech Mahindra Global Chess League Season 4 Trophy Unveiled by World’s Top Chess Stars Ahead of Bengaluru Opener appeared first on Sports News Portal | Revsportz.

Haryana has emerged as the new centre of power in Indian women’s hockey. The girls from Haryana are not only making waves at the international level — with the Indian team, which comprised 35 percent Haryana players, achieving a best-ever fifth-place finish at the World Cup — but they are also dominating the junior circuit at the national level.

Recently, Haryana became the champion of the 16th Hockey India Junior Women National Championship in Pune. In fact, the Haryana team got sweet revenge for last year’s final defeat, beating defending champions Jharkhand 2-1 in the final. Haryana had lost to Jharkhand by the same scoreline in last year’s final at Kakinada.

Haryana coach Azad Singh Malik said the state had won the national title after a gap of three years. Haryana had also won the championship in 2021 and 2022. In the previous three editions, the team had finished runners-up once and third twice.

The Haryana team had remained unbeaten throughout the junior national championship that concluded last week. The team opened its campaign with a 10-1 win over Bengal and followed it with a 3-0 victory over Odisha. In the quarter-final, Haryana defeated Chandigarh 3-1 before cruising to an 8-0 victory over Chhattisgarh in the semi-final.

In the final, Jharkhand took the lead through Mundri Saroj in the 19th minute. Haryana equalised when Bhavya converted a penalty corner in the 23rd minute. Khushi then scored in the 42nd minute to put Haryana ahead and seal the title, Malik said.

The coach said the team had steadily emerged as a strong force at the national level and the current squad had proved its mettle in a tournament featuring several promising young players. Bhavya was named the Player of the Tournament, while Supreet was adjudged the Best Forward.

The Haryana team comprised Ishika, Bhavya, Jasmine, Tamanna, Sakshi and Khushi from Sonepat; Deepika, Himanshi, Kirti, Aditi, Anjali, Diksha, Shashi Khasa, Durga and Vanshishika from Hisar; and Anjani and Sukhpreet Kaur from Kurukshetra.

Importantly, most of these players are from the rural background belonging to families of farming and working classes.

The title assumed significance as the Haryana women’s hockey team has achieved it despite the lack of adequate facilities, including qualified coaches and infrastructure at the grassroots level, say hockey lovers.

The performance of the players from Haryana indicated the potential to play an important role in taking the national team to the top at the international level, including the World Cup and the Olympics, they maintained.

Within the state of Haryana, the women hockey has expanded to Sonepat and Hisar, in addition to its traditional centre, Shahbad, in the Kurukshetra district in recent years. A majority of the players in the present junior team are from these three districts, which include eight players from Sonepat and several others from Hisar and Kurukshetra.

Former Indian captain and coach Pritam Siwach, who trains young players at her academy in Sonepat, said the achievements of Haryana’s hockey players had been overshadowed by the popularity of other sports and needed greater promotion.

She said the current junior squad from Haryana had several players who could soon make debut in the senior Indian team.

“About five or six players are expected to make their transition in the Indian team next year, while some of the younger players also have the potential to make it later on,” she said. The players with the national team potential are Bhavya, Ishika, Khushi, Tamanna, Shashi and Supreet.

Siwach said the players were now receiving support from the Sports Authority of India (SAI) in Sonepat and increasing competition had contributed to the emergence of a stronger pool of players. However, she said the lack of grassroots facilities, particularly qualified coaches in the districts and astroturfs, could further harness the Haryana’s potential.

The success of Haryana’s junior team comes in the backdrop of best ever performance of the Indian team in the women hockey world cup with fifth position recently. The Hockey India has announced a reward of Rs 50 lakh to the Indian women’s hockey team for the same.

Notably, as many as seven of the 20 players in the Indian squad for the Asian Games are from Haryana, accounting for 35 per cent of the team which has headed to Japan including goalkeeper Savita Punia from Sirsa; defenders Jyoti and Shilpi Dabas from Shahbad in Kurukshetra; midfielders Sakshi Rana and Neha Goyal from Sonepat; and forwards Navneet Kaur from Shahbad and Deepika from Hisar.

Azad Singh Malik said Savita Punia, a resident of Jodhkan village in Sirsa district, remained an important part of the Indian side. Punia, who has been known as the ‘Wall of India’ for her performances as a goalkeeper, has spent her crucial years of training in Haryana and remains an important player for the national team. She was recently awarded the Padma Shri for her contribution to Indian hockey.

Seville [Spain], September 5 (ANI): Real Madrid suffered their first defeat of the La Liga season after losing 1-0 to Real Betis at La Cartuja, with Cucho Parrott’s second-half rebound proving decisive in a closely contested encounter.

Madrid started strongly and created two clear opportunities inside the opening 15 minutes. Arda Güler’s cross found Dean Huijsen, whose acrobatic effort was denied by the Betis goalkeeper, before Vinicius Jr.’s strike from a tight angle hit the post following another dangerous delivery from the Turkish midfielder.

The visitors continued to threaten, with Jude Bellingham creating a major chance just before half-time. The England midfielder’s through ball released Vinicius, who set up Kylian Mbappe inside the box, but Betis defenders blocked both attempts from the French forward.

NewsRanji Trophy: SKY not picked despite being available, Ayush Mhatre named new Mumbai vice-captainSuryakumar Yadav didn’t find a place in the 16-member Mumbai Ranji Trophy squad for the first game against Chandigarh despite making himself available. Nineteen-year-old Ayush M...Open →

Madrid came close again in stoppage time before the break when the Betis goalkeeper saved Bellingham’s header, while Huijsen’s follow-up effort struck the crossbar.

The tempo dropped after the interval, but Madrid remained dangerous. Mbappe missed a chance after Huijsen’s interception set him up in the box, while Thibaut Courtois denied Betis’ Deossa with a fine save.

However, Parrott reacted quickest to score from the rebound in the 80th minute after Courtois had stopped a header from a corner, giving Betis the lead.

Madrid pushed for an equaliser late in the game. Mbappe’s attempted chip struck the crossbar, while a goal from Jesus Fortea was ruled out for offside.

In stoppage time, Madrid were awarded a penalty after Vinicius Jr. was brought down inside the box. Mbappe stepped up, but goalkeeper Valles saved the spot-kick to preserve Betis’ advantage.

The result marked Real Madrid’s first defeat in La Liga this season, while Betis secured a memorable victory against one of the title contenders. (ANI)

(This content is sourced from a syndicated feed and is published as received. The Tribune assumes no responsibility or liability for its accuracy, completeness, or content.)

“Coaches aren’t there just to mentor or teach,” said Gaurav Khanna, referring to Suhas Yathiraj. “You need to identify talent and then convince them to hone it.”

“I was actually DM of Azamgarh when there was a competition organised in my area,” said Suhas. “I had gone to inaugurate it and, like you play casually, I was doing the same with the local players. That’s when my coach saw me play and asked if I wanted to play Para Badminton. I had never heard of it and said no, as I was busy with my day job and it wasn’t possible.

“Three months later, I called Sir and said I wanted to try my hand at it. After a few months, we travelled to China for my first tournament and I managed to do well there and win it. Had I lost there, I would have come back to India and no one would have known about Suhas LY, the athlete. Much credit goes to Gaurav Sir for getting me to where I am.”

A coach is not just a teacher. Rather, for some like Suhas, the coach is also a sounding board.

Leading into Teachers’ Day, it is time to pause and appreciate the work that some of our coaches do, or have done, with and for our para-athletes over the last few years. Maybe that’s why Sumit Antil, soon after winning the gold medal in Paris, put it around the neck of his coach as a gesture of appreciation for all the hard work that had been done behind the scenes. Maybe for the same reason, Sheetal Devi decided to dedicate her medal to the “Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board”.

“You can’t let these young athletes be on their own,” said Khanna, Head Coach of the Para Badminton team. “When things don’t go well for them, people write them off. But that’s where the coach’s job becomes the most important. If I tell them as a coach that they can surely make a comeback, they feel better and think not all is lost.”

“Gaurav Sir was God-sent,” said a player who did not wish to be named. “He mentored me at my worst and maybe that’s why I am back playing.”

“As coaches, you live this life,” says Khanna. “You aren’t playing and yet you are very much out there, living every moment with the athlete. You know what’s going through their minds and you want to help as much as possible. It is a unique relationship. And yet, you need to know that it is the athlete who will win and you must give the athlete his or her space. As a coach, you need to be backstage and not become the centre of attention.”

To every coach, leading into Teachers’ Day, we celebrate you all for the work you do and hope we produce many more coaches in India, for that is a dire need. We need to coach our coaches and reduce our dependence on foreigners going forward if we are to become a stronger sporting nation.

Watch the conclave on RevSportz from 10am onwards.

Follow Revsportz for latest sports news

The post Coaches: The mentors behind India’s para-sport success appeared first on Sports News Portal | Revsportz.