India’s World Cup Semifinal Dream Ends as Australia Hold on for a Draw

India’s wait for a place in the semi-finals of the Women’s Hockey World Cup goes on. beltedkingfisher.blog

A victory was the only result that would have taken the Women in Blue into the last four, but Australia held them to a goalless draw, ending India’s campaign at the quarter-final stage.

India had not reached a World Cup semi-final since the inaugural edition in 1974, when they finished fourth. Since then, their only other top-eight finish came in 2018. The opportunity was there this time, but Australia proved difficult to break down.

Australia thought they had taken the lead inside the opening two minutes when Grace Stewart found the net from close range. India immediately referred the decision, claiming the attempt was dangerous, and the review went in their favour. The goal was ruled out.

Australia enjoyed more possession during the opening quarter, but India remained compact and looked to threaten on the counter. Neither side could create a clear opening before the first break.

India had opportunities as the game progressed, but the final pass or finish was missing. A promising move involving Navneet Kaur and Neha eventually broke down, while a late penalty corner in the second quarter came to nothing.

Australia came close again in the third quarter. Savita made an important save from the top of the circle before Australia appeared to have finally broken the deadlock. However, the goal was overturned after a review found that the ball had struck an Indian defender’s arm, with the contact deemed dangerous.
India had their moments too.

Deepika had an opportunity from the centre but could not get a clean connection, while another promising move involving Navneet and Lalremsiami failed to produce a shot.

With time running out, India went all out. They removed their goalkeeper and brought on an additional outfield player, hoping to find the goal that would keep their semi-final hopes alive.

Instead, Australia increased the pressure. India’s defence was forced into desperate blocks and clearances, with Bichu Devi making a crucial save and the first rusher repeatedly throwing herself in front of Australian penalty-corner attempts.

Australia won another penalty corner late in the game with India defending without a goalkeeper. Salima Tete made a brave charge to stop the drag-flick, and Australia’s referral did not overturn the decision.
The final whistle confirmed India’s fate. Australia managed the closing moments smartly and secured the result they needed to progress.

India’s World Cup run is over, while Australia and the Netherlands advance to the semi-finals. India will now play for fifth place.

For More Updates Follow RevSportz

The post India’s World Cup Semifinal Dream Ends as Australia Hold on for a Draw appeared first on Sports News Portal | Revsportz.

London [UK], August 24 (ANI): The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) has launched an investigation into England fast bowler Brydon Carse after footage emerged on social media purportedly showing him being led away in handcuffs by police outside a nightclub in Derby, as per Cricinfo.

The incident is reported to have occurred late on Saturday. It is the latest embarrassing off-field incident involving an England cricketer in the past 12 months and is likely to raise further questions about the team’s relationship with alcohol.

According to a video posted by The Telegraph Cricket on X, Carse was detained by police but not arrested.

Carse is part of England’s squad for the first two Tests against Pakistan but was released to play for Durham in the County Championship after missing out on the final XI.

He scored 26 runs and returned match figures of 2 for 82 as Durham secured a win over Derbyshire inside three days. Carse was reportedly out celebrating with his Durham teammates when the incident occurred.

The ECB said on Sunday, “We are aware of an incident which is reported to have taken place in Derby last night, and are currently investigating. We will provide a further update when possible."

Carse was England’s leading wicket-taker in last winter’s Ashes series but has yet to feature in an international match this summer. He missed the series against New Zealand due to wrist and elbow injuries and was a late addition to the ODI squad for the India series.

He was subsequently named in England’s Test squad after proving his fitness while playing for Sunrisers Leeds in The Hundred. (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.)

Pacer Tushar Deshpande and off-spinner Tanush Kotian headlined a fine bowling performance with four wickets apiece as West Zone bowled out North for a lowly 251 on the opening day of their Duleep Trophy match at the Centre of Excellence.

Deshpande (4/57) and Tanush Kotian (4/72) shared the spoils equally as North, who were placed comfortably at 117 for 2 at one stage, were left gasping for breath at 220 for 9 before Anshul Kamboj's audacious 60 off 52 balls with five fours and equal number of maximums took them past 250-run mark.

North also made a mini comeback of sorts as left-arm spinner Abid Mushtaq bowled a peach of a delivery to castle opener Prithvi Shaw while other opener Harvik Desai was snapped up by India's T20 specialist Arshdeep Singh. West Zone ended the day's play at 31 for 2.

Tanush does star turn

In 2024-25, Kotian was summoned to Australia as a replacement of Ravichandran Ashwin, who had announced his retirement during the series. While he didn't get to play a game, Kotian with his all-round performance was in India contention and also went with India A to England in 2025.

However an indifferent 2025-26 Ranji Trophy season pushed him back in pecking order with Saransh Jain leapfrogging him to a Test cap. On the day, Kotian opened the bowling but it was in his second spell that he got the wicket of a dogged left-hander Ayush Doseja (42), who was caught by Urvil Patel.

Towards the latter half he polished the tail while Deshpande worked up brisk pace to hurry the batters and run through the middle-order. For North Zone, the baffling decision to drop opener Sanat Sangwan, who had scored 800 plus runs in Ranji Trophy, came back to haunt them.

The questionable selection of Yash Dhull, saw the former India U-19 skipper badly exposed as he couldn't play Kotian or Mukesh Choudhary confidently. He was finally dismissed by Shardul Thakur.

Ayush Badoni (51) was impressive till the time he stayed at the crease looking at ease against both pace and spin. Once Badoni was dismissed, there was no resistance from other batters until Kamboj saved them from embarrassment.

Brief Scores:
North Zone 1st Innings: 251 in 66.5 overs (Ayush Badoni 51, Anshul Kamboj 60, Tanush Kotian 4/72, Tushar Deshpande 4/57). West Zone 1st innings: 31/2 in 10 overs (Abid Mushtaq 1/5).

This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever